Last Tuesday, Hearing Officer Albert Burnham sat
in judgment over three Bolinas dogs who had been accused of being "potentially
dangerous" after attacking the pet cat of nearby resident. One
of the dogs, Indo, a Great Dane mix, had already been designated dangerous
in January 1997 for attacking another dog, but the dog’s designation
expired after three years in 2000.
In a decision issued by letter, Burnham ruled that
the dogs, Cassie and Indo, are potentially dangerous animals.
"It is adjudged that Indo and Cassie, when
unprovoked, killed a domestic cat named Jack, off the property of the
owner," the letter stated.
Burnham ruled that the dogs must "at all times
be kept indoors or in a securely fenced yard from which Indo and Cassie
can not escape and into which children cannot trespass," and cannot
go off the property unless they are wearing a strong leash, an "escape
proof" collar and are controlled by an adult. The owner of the
dogs, Sue Anne Russum, "must install locks on all five of her gates
and the gates shall be kept locked at all times. A buzzer or other communication
system shall be installed so that visitors may enter the property. Respondent
shall walk no more than two of her dogs at the same time. If Indo or
Cassie are sold or moved from Bolinas Russum must within two working
days notify Marin County Animal Control Department."
Russum still denies that Indo took part in the
attack, and said the sanctions upon the dog are an example of "inappropriate"
punishment. Indo is a wobbly 13-year-old in bad health. Last Wednesday,
at the Russum house, Indo was docile and affectionate with his owners.
Russum has no problem with the "potentially dangerous" label
for Cassie. Russum admits that Cassie attacked Jack and was grateful
that the judge let Rosie off the hook. Rosie, also owned by Russum,
was not ruled potentially dangerous because Burnham dismissed the evidence
presented against her as vague and "unspecific in nature."
On Tuesday, Russum said she had not yet examined
how much a buzzer system would cost and was not sure it’s even
legal to command someone to install one.
Deborah Flick, the owner of the now-deceased cat,
said that after the hearings Russum’s son Memphis Russum told her
and her boyfriend Michael that, "You’re not part of this community.
You’re only residents."
"In Bolinas, people figure things out among
each other," Russum said. "It’s not like you’re
not accountable for things, but you talk to the person first."
Many in Bolinas moved there to get away from invasive
government agencies, Flick said, and do not like people calling in county
agencies, particularly the Humane Society, in a place where there are
more dogs wandering around town than people.