Shon
06-30-2004, 10:19 AM
Law Barks at Dogs' Bites
Two-and-a-half-year-old Joey Sievert and her mom drove from their home in Colorado Springs to the Capitol on Tuesday just to say thanks to Gov. Bill Owens.
He signed a bill in April designed to help victims of dog attacks, such as Joey, recover medical damages - even if it was the dog's first bite.
Joey's mother, Shawndel Sievert, said the medical bills for injuries that her daughter suffered when a neighbor's black Labrador mix bit the child have already totaled $11,000.
More surgery is needed, but the neighbor's homeowners insurance has refused to pay any of it, Sievert said. She said the denial was based largely on an old Colorado "first bite free" law that requires proof of an animal's viciousness before a claim can be filed.
The Sieverts, who were dog-sitting the neighbor's pet, have no medical insurance, so they're footing the bill themselves. And Joey, who was 18 months old when bitten, has at least two more operations to go.
Joey met the governor, then seemed more interested in playing with her older sister, Hailey, 10, on the lush Capitol lawn than in paying attention to what the adults were chatting about.
Two lawmakers who pushed for tougher legislation, Rep. Debbie Stafford, R-Aurora, and Rep. Mike Merrifield, D-Manitou Springs, were there as well.
The governor signed a scrapbook that Joey's mom has been keeping to show her what happened and how Joey - as well as others who have been victims of dog attacks - helped change Colorado's law.
"She showed us the need to change and toughen Colorado's statutes regarding dog bites," Owens said, adding it was long overdue to scrap the old law that, in effect, gave dogs one free bite.
"We don't say you can rob a bank and only be charged with the second offense," the governor said. "We don't say you can assault somebody but only be charged with a second offense.
"Why should we give a dog owner two bites of the apple, which is what we have been saying in the vernacular of the Capitol. It's not right."
The mother told the governor her daughter was now doing well. Still, the new law will not help them - just future victims.
"So, day by day, we're paying the bill," Sievert said. "They just made the wrong mom mad. You don't bite my daughter's nose off and then tell me nobody's responsible for it."
Although the new law effectively eliminates the "first bite free" statute, it also has a section that has led to a court fight. It stops Denver and other cities from imposing breed-specific bans.
Denver had banned pit bulls within the city limits since 1989 and is battling the state over that issue.
The governor said the courts will decide that part of the law, "but luckily, I don't believe what they decide on that part of the law will have any impact on the most important part of the law, which is we hold pet owners responsible for the first bite, not wait until the second."
Two-and-a-half-year-old Joey Sievert and her mom drove from their home in Colorado Springs to the Capitol on Tuesday just to say thanks to Gov. Bill Owens.
He signed a bill in April designed to help victims of dog attacks, such as Joey, recover medical damages - even if it was the dog's first bite.
Joey's mother, Shawndel Sievert, said the medical bills for injuries that her daughter suffered when a neighbor's black Labrador mix bit the child have already totaled $11,000.
More surgery is needed, but the neighbor's homeowners insurance has refused to pay any of it, Sievert said. She said the denial was based largely on an old Colorado "first bite free" law that requires proof of an animal's viciousness before a claim can be filed.
The Sieverts, who were dog-sitting the neighbor's pet, have no medical insurance, so they're footing the bill themselves. And Joey, who was 18 months old when bitten, has at least two more operations to go.
Joey met the governor, then seemed more interested in playing with her older sister, Hailey, 10, on the lush Capitol lawn than in paying attention to what the adults were chatting about.
Two lawmakers who pushed for tougher legislation, Rep. Debbie Stafford, R-Aurora, and Rep. Mike Merrifield, D-Manitou Springs, were there as well.
The governor signed a scrapbook that Joey's mom has been keeping to show her what happened and how Joey - as well as others who have been victims of dog attacks - helped change Colorado's law.
"She showed us the need to change and toughen Colorado's statutes regarding dog bites," Owens said, adding it was long overdue to scrap the old law that, in effect, gave dogs one free bite.
"We don't say you can rob a bank and only be charged with the second offense," the governor said. "We don't say you can assault somebody but only be charged with a second offense.
"Why should we give a dog owner two bites of the apple, which is what we have been saying in the vernacular of the Capitol. It's not right."
The mother told the governor her daughter was now doing well. Still, the new law will not help them - just future victims.
"So, day by day, we're paying the bill," Sievert said. "They just made the wrong mom mad. You don't bite my daughter's nose off and then tell me nobody's responsible for it."
Although the new law effectively eliminates the "first bite free" statute, it also has a section that has led to a court fight. It stops Denver and other cities from imposing breed-specific bans.
Denver had banned pit bulls within the city limits since 1989 and is battling the state over that issue.
The governor said the courts will decide that part of the law, "but luckily, I don't believe what they decide on that part of the law will have any impact on the most important part of the law, which is we hold pet owners responsible for the first bite, not wait until the second."