Yorkville to consider resident's proposed pit bull ban

Please note that Yorkville, IL is NOT a home rule city - this means state law prohibits them from passing BSL - this does not stop them from trying though. If you are a resident please go to this meeting and represent your rights as laid out by IL state law.

Yorkville to consider resident's proposed pit bull ban
July 16, 2009
By ROWENA VERGARA rvergara@scn1.com

YORKVILLE -- Yorkville resident Lou Denny says he doesn't want to be afraid to walk around his neighborhood.


But he can't help but fear the pit bull that lives in his apartment complex or any other pit bull that may be on the street.


Denny has never been bitten or attacked by a pit bull. But a June 29 incident in Aurora involving a pit bull that bit a teenager, assaulted a golden retriever and caused injury to the retriever's owner was enough for Denny to wonder if pit bulls should be banned altogether.


At the very least, he would like to see the breed banned in Yorkville.


At 6 p.m. July 23, Yorkville's Public Safety Committee will discuss a pit bull ban proposed by Denny. He plans to talk about the possibility of placing the question of a ban on the ballot for the next election.


"I want to bring that awareness to the community. ... If these pit bulls get loose, they're devastating," Denny said. "I hope there's a crowd that's supportive of this, and if there isn't, it will be a losing battle."


Getting issue on ballot

The rather unusual request to discuss a ban on a specific breed has sparked questions of the ban's logic.


"Personally, I don't know how you could enforce it. But everybody has the right to say their piece," said 1st Ward Alderman Wally Werderich, who heads the Public Safety Committee.


Getting the question on the ballot could require a certain number of residents to sign a petition in support of the referendum. If the pit bull ban question were to appear on a future election ballot, it's possible for it to be considered an advisory referendum. That means that if it passes, it would be non-binding and would not affect current laws.


An advisory referendum was on last November's ballot for Kendall County, in which voters defeated a measure asking the Illinois Legislature to allow residents to carry concealed firearms.


"You can kind of see where a majority of the voters stand on a particular subject," Werderich explained of the advisory referendum.

Existing laws

Mayor Valerie Burd also expressed concerns about enforcement of a possible pit bull ban.
The city already has an ordinance regarding vicious domestic animals, she said.


According to city code, any animal deemed vicious may be impounded or euthanized. If an animal is released, the owner must post a sign visible from 500 feet that the property contains a dangerous or vicious dog.


"We try not to target any special breed. It depends on the actions (the animal) takes," Burd said.


Sgt. Barry Groesch, spokesman for the Yorkville Police Department, said local police have not taken complaints about violent pit bulls, or vicious dogs in general.


Yorkville also recently reinstated a leash law, which requires domestic animals to be on leashes at all times if they're outside.


"We have had a couple calls here and there and have handled them," Groesch said of enforcement of the leash law.


The July 23 meeting will take place in the conference room of City Hall at 800 Game Farm Road.

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/beaconnews/news/1669010,2_1_AU16_YOPITBULL_S1-090716.article