Owner of cat-killing dogs heads to court next month
New laws bite back against dangerous dogs
By Donna C. Gregory

Virginia's dangerous dog laws changed on July 1. Owners of dogs suspected to be dangerous can now be summoned to appear before a judge in General District Court.

A Chesterfield woman whose dogs allegedly killed her neighbor's cat is scheduled to appear in General District Court on September 13, becoming the first person in the county to be charged under Virginia's new dangerous dog law.

According to Chesterfield County Animal Control, Anne Armantrout, of the 12000 block of Whitley Manor Drive, is charged with allowing her two dogs to run loose in the Highlands subdivision.

Her dogs, both mixed breeds, allegedly killed a neighbor's cat after they escaped from Armantrout's yard.

Under a new state law, a General District Court judge will now determine if Armantrout's dogs are considered "dangerous." If that ruling comes, Armantrout will be required to register her dogs with Virginia's Dangerous Dog Registry and confine them to her home or a secure outside enclosure, posting signs to warn visitors of potential harm. In public, the dogs will have to be leashed and muzzled. In addition, Armantrout will be required to obtain an insurance policy valued at no less than $100,000 that covers animal bites.

Virginia's laws regarding dangerous dogs changed on July 1, prompted by the mauling death of 82-year-old Dorothy Sullivan by unleashed pitbulls in Spotsylvania County last year.

Previously, owners whose dogs were suspected to be dangerous were ordered to appear before an animal control committee that determined if the dog was indeed a danger to society. Owners could appeal the committee's decision to General District Court.

The new law bypasses the committee process, giving animal control and law enforcement officers the ability to go directly to a magistrate, who can issue a summons to General District Court.

"For the first time, [the determination of if a dog is dangerous] has to be found by a judge," explained Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Robert Fierro.

Under the state statute, a "dangerous dog" is defined as a canine that has "bitten, attacked, or inflicted injury on a person or companion animal that is a dog or cat, or killed a companion animal that is a dog or cat."

Troublesome dogs can also be deemed "vicious" if they've "killed a person" or "inflicted serious injury to a person, including multiple bites" or "serious disfigurement." In those cases, the dog is euthanized.

"In addition to reworking the dangerous dog laws, [lawmakers] also created criminal penalties for people whose dogs have already been declared dangerous," explained Fierro. "Now, if you have a dog that's been declared dangerous and it bites a human, it could be a felony and land you in prison for up to five years. It makes it easier to prosecute someone whose dog has been declared dangerous and didn't take the appropriate measures to protect the community."

Still, Fierro says situations involving dangerous dogs rarely make it to the courtroom. "These are rare events," he said. "We only get a few of these each year."