One of the nurses at our pet hospital had a bad day last week...a very bad day. It seems like such an outrageous story that I felt I had to share it with all of you. Our nurse was driving through Denver (she lives here in Colorado Springs) to go visit some friends. Traveling with her in the car was her 10 month-old pit bull puppy that she had recently adopted. As she drove along the highway through Denver, a police officer pulled her over, made her get out of the car, and proceeded to do one of the most outrageous things I've ever heard.
As many of you know, Denver has a ban on pit bulls so that no one in the city limits are allowed to own or have a pit bull dog. Apparently, this law was enough for this officer to fine her $250.00 dollars for her "criminal activity" (she tried to explain that she did not live in Denver and was simply driving through but he would hear none of it). After treating her like a criminal and writing her a citation, he called the Denver Humane Society and violently dragged her terrified puppy out of her car (using a rabies pole no less). He then confiscated the dog and told her that she would have to pay an additional fine to get her dog back (after a minimum 3-day waiting period at the humane society). Mind you, this puppy was doing absolutely nothing but cowering in the back of the car (he wasn't barking or being threatening in any way).
After three days and several fines, she was finally able to get her dog back and brought him home here to the Springs. However, she still must appear in court and pay any court fees that may apply. I don't know about you, but this seems like such an outrageous abuse of authority. It's almost as if this officer decided to mess around with this woman just so that he could write her a ticket. I felt pretty upset after hearing her story and started thinking about the times when we've visited my Mother in Denver with our pit bull dog in the car. I don't see how driving through Denver with a mild-mannered puppy who isn't bothering a soul constitutes a serious crime.
What do all of you think? Have you ever heard about something like this before? What would you do in this situation and what should our employee do when she appears in court? I'm interested in your thoughts!
--Dana
Wow!That feel like an egregious abuse of power to me and I think she should figure out who to file a complaint with. It should not be a crime to drive through Denver with a pit bull. Was she supposed to go around? And that she explained this to him, and that her Colorado Springs address was (most likely) on her driver's license, and that her puppy was not behaving aggressively in any way, says to me that the officer was having a bad day and taking it out on her or has an issue with dogs in general. That's simply not right. The fines are bad enough, not to mention the trauma to her pup. I feel outraged on her behalf!
turtlecookie
Posted by: turtlecookie | December 22, 2009 at 08:27 AM
I agree. This sounds outrageous!
I guess she should travel with her dog in a crate inside the car from now on through Denver so no one can see the dog. And, if I were her, I'd contact the media, the officer's superiors, and probably an attorney. I'm not one for lawsuits, but this one sounds like abuse, not enforcing the law.
I agree with you. This is just hard to believe!
Posted by: Laurel | December 22, 2009 at 08:37 AM
Thanks for you comments...I agree with you Laurel that contacting the media might be appropriate. It is a good lesson for us all that when we travel, we should have our pets in crates.
Posted by: Dana | December 23, 2009 at 09:45 AM
That is extremely upsetting to me. I will do what I can to spread the word about this.
Posted by: Lindsay | December 25, 2009 at 06:07 PM
That's just abusing the laws, which might I add at rediculous to begin with. I live in the province of Ontario, and we also have a pit bull ban here too. It's so shameful to have such a law, it's not the dogs that are the problem but the owners. In all honesty she has a valid case to take not only the police officer himself, but also the city to court. Citing abuse of the law, harassment, and negligence. Is there any way she can fight the fines she recieved?? It would be smart to share her story with the local media.
Posted by: Jordan | December 25, 2009 at 06:59 PM
WAY WAY WAY Out of line if the facts presented are the only basic facts. Not only should she show up in court but she should bring others in if possible and at the very least get her money back and maybe even an apology from the officer. WAY out of line.
Posted by: Ryan | December 26, 2009 at 06:02 PM