The Jefferson city council spent most of its Aug. 24 meeting serving as the jury for an appeal of a determination of a dog as “illegal” under the city animal control and protection ordinance. After an hour of discussion and ‘testimony,’ the council in a split decision denied the appeal. Jackson, a 5-year-old German shepherd owned by Erick and Jill Johnson, must not be within the Jefferson city limits.
Jackson has lived with the Johnsons since he was a pup. During that time, there have been no complaints to law enforcement about him or either of the Johnsons two other dogs.
On July 27, a home healthcare worker went to the Johnsons’ home to see Erick, who is physically disabled due to a health condition. According to Erick, the provider told him she would arrive between 2 and 4 pm, and he had planned to have the dogs in the house in kennels before she arrived. However, the provider arrived at 1:55, before he had Jackson in the kennel. Erick allowed the provider to come in. She sat in Erick’s armchair, directly in front of the Johnsons’ 3-year-old grandson, who was playing on the floor.
Erick then went to bring Jackson in. Jackson raced to the living room. Due to his disability, Erick was unable to get to him quickly enough to prevent him from biting the provider on the calf.
The provider went to the Greene County Medical Center emergency department for treatment, and per policy, medical center staff called the LEC. Police officer Bohden Bigler responded and did the report. Jackson’s bite was labeled as “unprovoked,” so per the ordinance he must be abated from the community.
At the Aug. 24 council meeting, attorney Joel Baxter, who was hired by the Johnsons, offered a compromise before going into the appeal hearing. The Johnsons agreed to meet all requirements of housing a “vicious” dog, which includes carrying at least $100,000 liability coverage, a privacy fence, muzzling, and more. Baxter justified the lesser designation by pointing out that there had been no other complaints about Jackson and that complying with “vicious” dog requirements would guarantee the safety of the community.
The council declined to accept the compromise and moved to the appeal. Both Erick and Jill Johnson spoke during the appeal. Jackson went to live at Linn Cipperly-Price’s rural Paton farm when he was abated from Jefferson, and Baxter called her as a witness. She said that based on her training and experience as a vet tech, Jackson was defending the 3-year-old grandson. The home healthcare provider, in standing up when she saw Jackson come toward her, appeared as a threat to the boy.
Price said she has known Jackson since he was a pup in the Jefferson park and recreation dog obedience class. At her farm, Jackson shows no aggression toward the Price children or any of the farm animals. “I would not go out on a limb with my own kids with a dog I didn’t trust,” she said.
She said Jackson is not a risk to the safety of the community, and that what occurred was “just a bad situation due to Erick’s impairment in mobility.”
Council member Harry Ahrenholtz said the bite was “a sad incident, no matter what we decide.” He made the motion to deny the appeal, upholding the “illegal” designation. Pat Zmolek seconded the motion, saying the situation “could have been worse,” and that the council needs to back officer Bigler in his determination.
Dave Sloan said Bigler had followed policy and the ordinance. He said he’s been “on both sides” of a similar situation, but he didn’t want to set a precedent.
Ahrenholtz, Zmolek and Sloan voted in favor of the motion.
Council members Matt Wetrich and Darren Jackson voted against the motion. Jackson called it a “conundrum,” as he agreed with the officer but felt in his heart that the “vicious” designation was correct. Wetrich said he also has been on both sides of a similar situation and he could relate to the Johnsons in their position of having to remove Jackson from their household.
