SB417: relative to vicious dog assaults.

SB 417 - AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE

02/05/04 0263s

2004 SESSION

04-3141

08/01

SENATE BILL 417

AN ACT relative to vicious dog assaults.

SPONSORS: Sen. Estabrook, Dist 21

COMMITTEE: Wildlife and Recreation

ANALYSIS

This bill requires medical personnel treating the victim of a dog attack to report the attack to the animal officer, if any, or to the town clerk.

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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

02/05/04 0263s

04-3141

08/01

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Four

AN ACT relative to vicious dog assaults.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 Dogs a Menace, a Nuisance or Vicious. RSA 466:31, II-a is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:

II-a. If the skin of a person has been punctured by a dog any medical personnel who treated the victim shall make a report of the incident to the animal officer, if any, or to the town clerk in the town or city where the incident occurred. The report shall include the name and address of the injured person, and the identity of the dog and its owner, if known. The animal officer or town clerk shall, within 24 hours, notify the injured person, or, in the case of a minor, the minor's parent or guardian, whether, according to town records, the dog has been appropriately immunized against rabies. Anyone making a report in good faith under this paragraph shall be immune from any liability, civil or criminal, that might otherwise be incurred or imposed.

2 Penalties. Amend RSA 466:31-a, II(c) and (d) to read as follows:

(c) [$100] $200 for the first vicious offense under RSA 466:31, II(g).

[(d) $200 for the second or subsequent vicious offense committed within 12 months of the first vicious offense under RSA 466:31, II(g).]

3 Penalties. Amend RSA 466:31-a, III to read as follows:

III. Any person who pays a civil forfeiture specified in paragraph II [2 times in any 12-month period according to the records of the town or city clerk,] may not pay a civil forfeiture for subsequent violations of RSA 466:31 [in that 12-month period,] for the same dog, but shall have those cases disposed of in district or municipal court. In the case of a vicious dog, as described by RSA 466:31, II(g), where its behavior presents a threat to public safety, immediate district court or municipal court proceedings may be initiated in lieu of the civil forfeiture.

4 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2005.