**ALERT** Athens, Ohio

Contact Information
Mayor Richard Abel
8 East Washington Street,
Athens, Ohio, 45701
Telephone: 740-592-3338
FAX: 740-592-3341
mknight@ci.athens.oh.us

Contact Information:
Athens City Council
8 East Washington Street, Athens, Ohio, 45701
Telephone: 740-592-3342
FAX: 740-593-8220 dwalker@ci.athens.oh.us

City Council meets in Regular Session every 1st and 3rd Monday of the month at 7:30 PM in the Council Chambers on the third floor of the City Building.

Committees meet on the 2nd and 4th Mondays of the month generally at 7:00pm.



Law director proposes restrictions on pit-bull terriers, related breeds
2007-10-18
By Nick Claussen
Athens NEWS Associate Editor



Athens Law Director Garry Hunter is asking City Council to approve an ordinance limiting the ownership of pit-bull terriers in the city.

A member of a pit-bull rescue group said Wednesday, though, that the city just needs to enforce laws already on the books and should not single out pit bulls.

Hunter, who raised the issue at council's Monday evening meeting, pointed out at that time that the city currently has no legislation that deals with the dog breed.

The canine breeds commonly called "pit bulls" have been associated with aggressive behavior and attacks on humans and pets, and have been the subject of restrictive legislation in municipalities across America. While pit bull technically refers to the American pit-bull terrier, the term also has been applied to the American Staffordshire terrier and the Staffordshire bull terrier, among others.

Defenders of pit bulls maintain that they're harmless, unless poorly trained or sick.

"Pit bulls are just like any other breed of similar size and are no more dangerous.," said Lisa Zimmerman, a member of a pit bull rescue organization in central Ohio. "They don't have locking jaws, they don't cause more damage when they attack and they are not more likely to attack."

Hunter explained Monday that he received an e-mail in early October from Zimmerman's pit-bull rescue organization.

According to the e-mail, the organization is updating its database "regarding safe and legal placement of approved pit bulls throughout the state of Ohio." The group read through city ordinances on the Athens Web site and did not find any mention of a ban on the dog breed, and then contacted Hunter to make sure there are no ordinances, according to the e-mail.

Hunter told City Council that the e-mail prompted him to also look at the city ordinances and he confirmed that Athens has no legislation dealing with pit bulls. After seeing that there is no pit-bull ordinance, he put together a sample ordinance for council to consider.

"I am suggesting that we do something pretty quickly," Hunter said.

His sample ordinance, which is based on an ordinance in Toledo, states that no person, organization or corporation can keep more than one pit-bull terrier or pit-bull mixed-breed dog. If the pit bull has puppies, the owner would have to file a form with the Athens County dog warden and transfer ownership of the puppies by the time they are 3 months old.

The ordinance also requires owners who take pit bulls off of their properties to keep them on leashes and keep them muzzled.

Hunter said that violating the ordinance would be a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 and six months in jail. Council took no action on Hunter's proposal, but it probably will be discussed in committee meetings.

Hunter said after the meeting that he is worried that because the pit-bull rescue organization knows that Athens has no ordinance in place regarding pit bulls, the group may start placing dogs that need to be adopted with people in the city.

"I don't want a proliferation of pit bulls (in Athens)," Hunter said.

Zimmerman said there are no current plans to place pit bulls in Athens, but added that they have been placed here before and have not caused problems.