Boston Injury Attorney Blog

Last month, the Waltham, Massachusetts City Council reviewed the city's ordinances for "vicious dogs." The inspection came on the heels of a letter sent to the City Council from Mayor Jeannette McCarthy, who requested an expansion of Waltham's vicious dog ordinances. The Mayor stressed that she had been approached multiple times by people complaining that dangerous dogs were frequently roaming their property, but there was nothing the city could do because the dog could not be classified as a "vicious dog."

The city's definition of a vicious dog is "any dog with a known propensity, tendency or disposition to make unprovoked attacks, cause injury to persons, or otherwise endanger the safety of human beings or domestic animals." Mayor McCarthy has requested the Ordinance and Rules Committee to write a more specific law, which would require all owners to safely keep their pets in their yards. The Mayor wants to begin mailing notices and subsequent fines to dog owners who let their dogs roam free in Waltham. McCarthy told the Waltham News Tribune that "We're trying to put the owners on notice that we have the leash law and that includes the appropriate measures to keep it, if you're going to keep it unleashed, in your yard." The Council is set to meet in the near future for a final vote on the proposed changes.

Massachusetts state laws for dog bites have been regarded as highly effective in protecting victims, especially young children. Pursuant to the state law, a dog owner is strictly liable for dog bites, unless the victim was trespassing, teasing, or abusing the dog. A child under age 7 is presumed to have no contributory fault in the event of a dog bite, but that presumption is rebuttable. Further, a person injured by a dog in Massachusetts can also advance a negligence claim against a dog owner as a cause of action.

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Recently in Massachusetts, two dogs injured a little girl in an attack. According to the Worcester Telegram Gazette, Corrie Hammond, 6, was riding her scooter on Gates Court, a quiet dead-end street that her parents' thought was safe until a pair of pit bulls attacked her back on September 7, 2009. Apparently, one of the dogs jumped up and bit her on her face. She has a puncture wound on her forehead that will leave a scar.

M.G.L. ch. 140 - 155 makes a dog owner or keeper liable for bodily or property damage caused by the dog unless the injured person was committing a trespass or tort, or was teasing, tormenting or abusing the dog. Massachusetts Health Laws require that all animal bites; be reported to the Board of Health and the Dog Control Officer. Bites must be reported as soon as possible after the bite occurs so that the animal can be located and examined to determine its health. In many towns, once a dog bites, a hearing will be held to determine if the dogs should be euthanized. In Corrie's case, the dogs were ordered to be euthanized. These pit bulls were not neutered, not vaccinated, and not at all socialized.

An animal attack is a frightening and traumatic event and is often unprovoked. If you or someone you know is a victim of a dog bite attack, get the name, address and phone number of the dog owner. Be able to describe the circumstances of the animal bite including the time of day and place of occurrence. It is helpful to know what kind of dog was involved. We can help find out if the dog immunized for rabies.

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