MARYLAND: LAWSUIT AT FIRST BITE!?!?

In the aftermath of the Maryland Court of Appeals' decision a few weeks ago that pit bull dogs are "inherently dangerous" and therefore subject to strict liability in civil suits for bites [see, my Twitter report and "Attorney Charles Ware's Blog, Monday, May 7, 2012], the so-called "first bite" could soon cost owners of all dogs in Maryland.

A 10-member task force of Maryland's Senate and House of Delegates members heard testimony in response to the Court of Appeals ruling. It excludes pit bulls and pit bull mixes from the state’s so-called “one-bite law,” which only holds dog owners responsible for a bite or attack if the dog previously had bitten or threatened another person.

Many animal-rights advocates call the ruling unfair discrimination against the pit bull dogs and their owners, and the task force could recommend legislation that would effectively cancel out the decision.

One option they discussed was to get rid of the one-bite law and hold all owners liable from the first violent incident — a move that many lawmakers and activists said would put pit bulls back on equal footing with other breeds and force all dog owners to be more responsible.

Many other states already hold owners of all breeds liable from the first bite, and the proposal appeared to draw near-unanimous approval from supporters and opponents of the Court of Appeals ruling.

Stay tuned for this debate.

[The Washington Times, Tuesday, June 19, 2012, "Ruling on Pit Bulls Prompted Change"]