HomeMy WebLinkAbout498 - Ordinances ORDIlqANCE NO. 498
AN C~DI1/ANCE OF THE CITY ~ OF ~HE CITY OF RANCHO
~, CAT.Y--m~/~F/A, ADDING A N~M ~ 6.04 TO THE
RANC~i3 (XK~C/qGA ~ICIPAL O~OE ~ TO
The City Council of the city of ~ Cuc~ does hereby ordain
as foll~s:
SECTIC~ 1: A new Cha~ 6.04 hereby is added to title 6 of the
Rancho Cu~ Municipal Code to _rea~__, in words and figures, as follow,s:
"Chapter 6.04
"Potentially Dangerous and/ar Vicious Dogs
t'Sectio~s:
"6.04.010 Intent
"6.04.020 Definitions
"6.04.030 Nc~-Applicability of Chapter
"6.04.040 Initiation of Hearing to Determine Dog as Potentially
Dangerous ar Vicious
"6.04.050 Seizure and I~ Pendinq Hearing
"6.04.060 Notice of Hearing
"6.04.070 Hearir~ Pr~; EvideA1ce; Sta~ of Proof
"6.04.080 Failure to Appear
"6.04.090 Determination; Fim/ings; Orders
"6.04.100 Notice a~d Service of Orders
"6.04.110 Circ~~ Under ~hich Dogs May Not Be Declared
Potentially ~ or Vicious
"6.04.120 Conditicrkal Release of Potentially Danq~ ar Vicious
"6.04.130 Reqistration and Fees
"6.04.140 Death, Sale, Transfer ar Permanent Removal; Notice
"6.04.150 Relocation Within City
"6.04.160 Removal frc~ List of Portly Dar~ Dogs
"6.04.170 Destruction, P4m~oval frc~ City ar Condition Release of
Vicicus Dogs
"6.04.180 Prc/libition frcln Owning or Keepin~ Dogs
"6.04.190 Severability
"6.04.200 Penalties far Violation of Chapter
"6.04.210 Civil Remedies Available
"6.04.010 Intent. ~ Chapter is enacted pursuant to the
authority of Article 11, Section 7 of the CCr~-titution of the State of
Califarnia and Califc~nia Fo~d ~ ;~3ricultural COde Section 31683 and is
and/ar vicious dogs within the City of Rancho Cucamon~a and to ensure prc~
and ~te procedural mec~ to ccrfcrol the threat of Dangerous and/or
vicious dogs to the health, safety and welfare of the c~,~nity.
OrdinanceNo. 498
Page 2
"6.04.020 Definitions.
the City Council for purposes of animal licensing, care, oca~trol, and
regulatio~ and shall incl,~e any public or private agency ~-oviding animal
"B. 'City' means the City of Rancho Cucam~ and shall include all
territory within the ~ted ~imits of the city whether now exist~ or
"C. 'Enclosure' ~,re~_ns a fence or structure suitable to prevent the
entry of young children, and which is suitable to confine a vicious dog in
conjunction with other measures which my be taken by the owner or keeper of
escaping. ~he animal shall be housed pursuant to Section 597t of the
California Penal Code as the same may be amended form time to time.
"D. 'Hearing Officer' means the City Manager of City or b~ or her
"E. 'Impounded, means taken into the custody of the ~ Oontrol
"F. 'Potentially Dengerous Dog' means any of the following:
within the ~rior thirty-six (36) mc~ch p~riod, ~ in any behavior that
requires defensive action by any person to prevent bodily injury when the
person and the dog are off the property of the owner or kee~_r of the dog.
"(ii) Any dog which, when t~~ke~, bites a person causing a
less severe injury than as defined in Section 6.04.020H.
"(iii) Any dog which, when un~x~ma~d, on two separate
occasions within the prior thirty-six (36) month period has killed, seriously
bitten, inflicted injury, or ~ caused injury to a domestic animal off
the property of the owner or ~ of tbe dog.
"G. 'Severe Injury' mea~ any physical injury to a human being that
results in muscle tears or disfigurin~ lacerati~s or requires multiple
'~{. 'Vicious Dog' m-a~_~ any of the following:
"(i) Ar~ dog seized ~ Section 599aa of the Califc~T~a Penal
a oc~vi~on of the owner or k. ccper under subdivision (a) of Section 597.5 of
inflicts severe injury on or kills a human being.
Ordinance No. 498
Page 3
violati~ of this Olapter or in violatic~ of any order(s) i~ after a
"6.04.030 Nc~-Ap~licability of ~?t~r. The provisions of this
Omutsr shall not a~9~¥ to any dog utilized b~ any law enf~
or any law enfant officer in the perform~ _-c~ of police ~ork.
"6.04.040 Init!atic~ of ~r~ tQ Determine Dog as Potentially
Danqerous or Vicious. If any aD~mml cz~fcrol officer or any law enforcement
officer determimms that there exists reas~h~le cause to believe that a dog is
potentially dangerous or vicious, the c~ief offioer of the Animal Control
De~, or his or her designee, or the head of the local law enforcement
agency, or his or her desi~, shall petiti~ the hearing officer for a
hearin~ f~r the purposes of detain/n/rig whether or not the dog in ~,~-tion
should be declared potentially Dangerous or vicious. ~mnever possible, any
cc~plaint received from a member of the public which serves as the evidentiary
basis for the an/real control officer or law enforoement officer to find
-6.04.050 ~inze a~ ~ Pen~ Hearin~.
"A. If upon investigation it is ~rm/ned by the animl control
officer or law enforcement officer that reaso~hle cause exists to believe the
control offioer or law enfox~ment offioer may seize and impound the dog
of the dog shall be liable to the City for the costs and expenses of keeping
the dog, if the dog is later determined to be potentially D~ngerous or
vicious.
"B. Whenever a dog has been impounded pursuant to sukxiivision A.
and it is not contrary to public safety, the chief animal control officer
shall permit the animal to be confined, at the owner's or keeper's expense, in
a kennel or w~c~r~ facility approved by the Animal ~1 Department.
"6.04.060 Notice of Hearing. Whenever a petition for the
determination that a dog is potentially Dangerous or vicious has been filed
with the hearing offioer, the chief officer of the Animal (kxfcrol
shall notify the ~wner or keeper of the dog that a hearing will be held before
the hearing officer at which time the owner or keeper my present evidence as
to why the dog should not be declared potentially Dangerous or vicious. The
owner or keeper of the d~g shall be served with notice of the hearing and a
copy of the petition, either personally or by first class mail, return receipt
requested. ~he notice of hearir~ shall specify the date, time and place of
the hearing to be ~ before the hearin~ officer and shall advise the
ow~r or ke~er of t~ Uog of that ~rson's qaxxtunity to person~ly a~p~r,
petition. The hearing shall be held not less than five (5) work/rig days nor
more than ten (10) wurk/n~ days after service of the notice of hearing upon
the owner or kee~er of the dog.
Ordinance No. 498
Page 4
"6.04.070 Hearinq Procedure; Evidence; Star~ard of Proof. The
hearing c~ the petition to detarmine if a dog is potentially Dangerous or
vicious before the hearing officer shall be open to the public. ~he hearing
officer may admit into evidenoe all relevant ev/~_~_denoe, including incident
r~x~ts and the affidavits of witnesses. In det~xmini~ whether a dog is or
is not potentially Dangerous or vicious, evidence of the followin~ shall be
considered at said hearing:
"A. Any previous ~ of the dog attacking, biting or causing
injury to a human being or other animal;
"B. ~he nature and extent of injuries inflicted and the number of
vice_ires involved;
"C. The plaoe where the bite, attack or injury oeo/fred;
"D. The presence or absence of any ~tion for the bite, attack
or injury;
"F. ~tber the dog emh/bits any characteristics of bein~ trained
for fighting or attack and other evidence tending to show suc~ training;
"G. Whether the dog exhibits characteristics of aggressiv~ or
unpredict~_ble temperament or behavior in the Uresenoe of human beings or other
domestic animals.
dmange its te~{~r-~me~t or behavior;
keeper.
"J. Any other relevant evidence o0~cer~n~ the ~eintenance of the
or keeper of tb_~ dog to prevent injuries to the public if the dog is permitted
to remain in the custody of the owner or keeper of the dog.
'~/he hearing officer may find, upon a pre~ of the evidence,
that the dog is potentially ~ or vicious and rake such ~=k=s as are
authorized by this ~cer.
"6.04.080 Failure to Appear. The hearir~ officer my decide all
keeper fails to appear at the hearing.
"6.04.090 Determination; F~; OrOex~. Based upon the evidence
presented at the b~aring, the hearing officer sb~] 1 determine whether the dog
should be classified as potentially Dange~-~ or vicious. ~e hearing officer
shall make such findings as are necessary to support the determination as to
whether the dog is potentially Dangerous or vicious and may rake such orders
No. 498
Page 5
as are d. ccmmd reasonably necessary, in accordance with the provisions of this
C~m~r~er, perta/z~/~ to the release, conditicmal release, removal frc~ the City
c~ other dispo~itic~ of the dog.
"6.04.100 Notice and Service of Orderm.
"A. At the conclusiom of the hearing conducted pursuant to Section
6.04.070, the owner ~r keeper of the dog shall be notified, in writing, of the
determination, f~ and orders issued by the hearing officer, either
persomally or by first class mail, postage prepaid. If a determination is
made that the dog is potentially Dang~ or vicious, the owner or keeper
shall cc~ply with all conditions and orders of the hearing officer in
accordance with the time schedule establ ~ by the hearing officer. No dog
found to be potentially Dang~ or vicious shall be released to the owner or
keeper thereof until and unless the Animal Control Department shall file with
the hearing officer a determination that all of theft er ms and conditions of
the order of release have been or will be cc~plied with in a reasonable time.
"B. If the owner or keeper of the dog contests the determination
arx]/or orders of the b~%ring officer, he or she may, within five (5) days of
the receipt of the notice of determination, appeal the decision of the hearing
officer to the Municipal Court in acourdanoe with the provisioms of California
Food and Agriculture Code Section 31622. Otherwise, the decision of the
hearing officer shall be final.
"6.04.110 C~ Under which Doqs May Not Be Dec]mr~
Potentially Danqe~ous or Vici~m.
"A. If, upon the conclusion of the presentation of the evidence at
the hearing, the hearing offioer determines that any of the following is true,
then the hearing officer shall not declare the dog potentially dangerous or
vicious:
"(i) If any injury or damage was sustained by a person who, at
the time of the injury or damage was sustained, was ccmmzitting a willful
the dog or was committing or attempting to ccm..Ldt a crime upon the premises;
"(ii) If any injury or damage was sustained by a person who, at
"(iii) If the dog, at the time any injury or damage w-us
sustained, was protecting or defending a person within the immediate vicinity
of the dog frc~ an attack, assault, battery, crime or attempt to c~mmit an
"(iv) If any injury or damage was sustained by a domestic
animal which , at the t/me the injury or damage was sustained, was teasing,
"B. No dog may be declared potentially dangerous or vicious if the
injury or damage to a dcmm~cic animal was sustained while the dog was w~rking
as a hunting dog, herding dog, or predator control dog on tb~ property of, or
under the control of, its owner or keeper, and the damage or injury was to a
species or type of dc~estic animal appropriate to the work of the dog.
Ordinanoe No. 498
Page 7
"6.04.140 Death. Sale. Transfer ~r Permanent P~m~val; Noti~. If a
dog detex~r~d to be a potentially ~ ~r vicious dog dies, ~r is sold,
transfex~ed ~r ~'m~r~ly r~moved frc~ the City, the owner ~r keeper of ~
potentially dangerous or vicious dog shall notify the Animal Control
Depa~ of the char~ c~ditic~ an~ new location of the dog, in writing,
within tw~ (2) ~ days of the changed conditionn in question.
"6.04.150 Relocation within City. No owner or keeper of a
potentially ~ or vicious dog shall transfer or remove the animal' frc~
the pxm~es to any other ~ within the City (except solely for
w~cer~ care) with~at first notifying the Animal (k~trol Department, in
writing, at least five (5) w~rking days prior thereto and shall permit the
AD,mai Control De~ar~mm_nt to investigate a~ certify as to the adequacy of any
er~losure or any other cc~fcrol mec~anis~s for the animal at the new pr~mises
"6.04.160 R~m~val from List of Potentially Dan~ Dog~. If
there are no additior~l incidents of any of the types of behavior described in
Section 6.04.020.F. of this ~ within a thirty-six (36) m~nth period frc~
the date of designation as a potentially dangerous dog, the dog shall be
r~m~r~ed frc~ the list of potentially dang~ dogs. The dog may, but is not
re~H~ed to be, removed from the list of potentially dangerous dogs prior to
the expiration of such thirty-six (36) m~F~ch period if the owner or keeper
mitigated the risk to the public safety.
"6.04.170 Destruction, Removal fr~m City or CoDd~tior~] Re!~e of
Vicious Dogs.
"A. If , at the conclusion of the hearing, the hearing officer
determines that a dog is a vicious dog, the hearing officer may oz~er the same
to be destroyed by the Animal Control D~ if the b~rir~ officer finds,
at the conclusion of the hearing, that the release of the dog w~uld create a
significant threat to the public health, safety and welfare or that the
release of the dog to the owner or keeper w~uld clearly oonstitute a danger to
human beings or ~d~-ti~ 'c animals.
"B. If the hearing officer ~, at the conclusion of the
hearing that a vicious dog may be returned to its owner and not destroyed, the
hearing officer may impose such conditions upc~ the c~nership or keeping of
the dog, including, but not limited to, the conditi~s set forth in Sections
6.04.120 through 6.04.150, inclusive, of this C~apter in order to protect the
public health, safety and w~lfare.
"C. Any dog ~ to be vicious and ~onditionally released
pursuant to this ~ shall permanently be placed on the list of vicious
"6.04.180 Prohibition frc~ Ownin~ or ~eep~inq ~E~3g~. ~%e owner or
kee~_r of any dog determined to be a vicious dog by the hearing officer, may
be prc~_~bited by the officer frc~ ownir~, possessing, c~ntrolling or having
custody of any dog for a period of up to three (3) years if the hearing
officer finds, at the conclusion of the hearing, that ~,T~.rship or possession
of a dog by that person w~uld create a significant threat to tb~ public
health, safety ~r w~lfare.
Ordinance No. 498
Page8
"6.04.190 Severability. The city Oouncil declares that, should any
p~ovision, section, paragra~, sentenoe or word of this <hapter be rendered or
declared invalid by any final court action in a court of cc~ jurisdic-
tion, or by reaso~ of any preemptive legislative, the r~a~ning provisi~,
sections, paragra~, sentences and words of tb~ Chapter shall r~ in full
force ard effect.
"6.04.200 Penalties for Violation of chapter. It shall be unlawful
for any person, firm, part--p, or corporation to violate any urovisic~ or
to fail to oc~ply with any of the requ~ of this Chapter. Any person,
firm, part--p, or uak~uk~ation violating any provisi~ of this Chapter or
failing to cc~ply with any of its re~,~ements shall be deemed guilty of a
m~ and upon conviction thereof shall be pum~hed by a fine not
($1,000.00), by = uing
six (6) mord~bs, or by both such fine and im~r~. Eac~ and every person,
firm, par~p, or corporation shall be deemed guilty of a separate offense
for each and every day or any p~rtion thereof during which any violation of
any of the ~--ovisions of this Chapter is c~ittsd, contim__~8__ or permi~ by
such person, firm, partnership or corpoxation, and shall be ~ punishable
"6.04.210 C~vil ~emedies Available. The violation of any of the
provisions of this Chapter shall constitute a nuisance and may be abated by
the City through civil prooess by means of restralnir~ or~?_, prelim{nary or
of such r~ances."
S~-TION 2: ~he Mayor shall sign this Ordinance and the City Clerk
shall cause the same to be published within fifteen (15) days after its
passage at least once in the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, a newspaper of
general circulation published in the City of Ontario, Califcxnia, and
circulated in the City of Rancho O___w~3a, California.
PAS6~D, ~, and ADOPI~D this 3rd day of June, 1992.
AYES: Alexander, Buquet, Stout, Williams, Wright
Dennis L. Stout, Mayor
D~-a J. Ad~, City Clerk
Ordinance No. 498
Page 9
I, DWR~A J. ADAMS, CITY c~RK of the City of Rancho Cucamonga,
Califcx~ia, do hereby certify that the foregoing Ordinance was introduced at a
regular meeting of the Council of the City of Rancho Cucamonga held on the
20th day of May, 1992, ard was finally passed at a re=3ular meeting of the City
Council of the City of Rancho O_~Amnnga held on the 3rd day of June, 1992.
Executed this 4th day of June, 1992, at Rancho (~, California.