Cincinnati -- a lesson in failure

It's tough to not laugh at Cincinnati at this point.  It's almost as if they're rats in the maze that keep pushing the same buzzer over and over hoping this is the time it doesn't shock them.  I don't know how else to explain it.

For starters, Cincinnati is under Ohio's state law sets restrictions on 'pit bulls' (insurance requirements, containment and leash requirement). In 2003, they decided that law wasn't working, so the city decided to institute an all-out ban on 'pit bulls'.  That too proved to be a failure.

In 2007, the city continued to euthanize over 1000 pit bulls a year, the number of "German Shepherds in the shelter started to grow, and the city estimated that it spend more than $86,000 prosecuting the 50 'pit bulls' that were taken from homes for being illegal.

So, the city decided to up the anty, and in spite of having one of the highest murder rates per capita in the country, in June of 2008, the city passed an ordinance that began training police officers to identify pit bulls so the police force could help enforce the ordinance.

So what do you do when that doesn't work? 

Jim McNulty, the president of the Westwood Civic Association said it's common for pit bulls to still live in his neighborhood and pleaded with the council to do something about it.  The Cincinnati SPCA says that over 1,000 'pit bulls' show up at the shelter still every year (although, it should be noted that the SPCA folks aren't very good at breed identification as they are currently facing a lawsuit for killing a woman's American Bulldog that was mistaken for a 'pit bull")

So, Cincinnati created more laws.

So this week, Cincinnati passed a law that not only can people not own pit bulls, but now it will be illegal to breed them, sell them, or give them away too.

Huh?

If it's illegal to own one? Then wouldn't it already be illegal to breed or sell one? 

So now, if someone is caught owning, keeping, breeding, selling or transfering owenrship of a pit bull in any way, they will face up to six months in jail. That's six months in jail for owning a dog.

Let's put this in perspective. Cincinnati is a crime-ridden city. Their murder rate is 4x the national average. Forcible rape? 3x the national average. Robbery? 4x. Burglary? 2x. Larceny? 2x.  Car Theft? 1.5x.  All of this helped get Cincinnati rates as the 16th most dangerous city in the US with a population over 75,000.

And we're going to put people in jail because they own a certain type of dog, that may or may not be dangerous, that may or may not even be a pit bull. Are we going to take Paulette Evans' dog, kill it and throw her in jail too? 

That's not how I'd prefer to use the jail space in Cincinnati if I lived there.

It is sort of entertaining to watch the city council in Cincinnati try to make their breed specific laws work. They're now on version 4.0 of this ordinance because they can't get it to work. Maybe, at some point they're realize the law isn't not working because it isn't harsh enough -- maybe eventually they'll figure out it isn't working because it is an unenforceable law based on a failed premise.

You can't tell a vicious dog by its shape.And even if certain breeds were more aggressive, the ability to tell different breeds apart, particularly with mixed breeds, is virtually impossible and will lead to lawsuits.  Dangerous dogs are not a problem -- but a symptom of a much larger societal problem that remains a problem within Cincinnati. It isn't the problem itself. 

And tweaking a failed law with a failed premise isn't going to fix it.

Comments

[Pitties Place]

I just wanted to point out that state law does not require owning no more than 1 'pit bull', altering and muzzling. State law requires proper confinement, $100,000 liability insurance, no debarking, muzzling is required only under certain circumstances and requires the use of a chain leash.

[Sue Cosby]

Just a quick correction. The ASPCA, although a national organization as far as assisting other shelters, influencing local policy (and fundraising!!) is not affiliated or associated in any way with local SPCA's in any area of the country other than New York City.

There is only one ASPCA and there are many other independent SPCA's. The only thing that the rest of these organizations have in common is the name. Some perform animal control, some perform law enforcement, some shelter, some don't, some are "limited admission", some are "open admission", some are "no kill" some are not.

It's an important distinction that people need to be aware of. When they see the tv commercials and send in the money - that money goes to the ASPCA in NYC, not the local SPCA down the street. That's not to say people wouldn't want to give to the ASPCA but they should know where their money is going.

[Brent]

PP -- thanks for the clarification. I went back to an email someone sent me with the clarification on it and I completely misread the email. I've made the change above. Sue, thanks for the correction. In my head I always add the "a" in the SPCA whether it deserves to be there or no (I blame Animal cops). Unfortunately I typed it this time also.

[PoochesForPeace]

If you haven't already, you should send this blog entry to news stations in Ohio. As an Ohio resident, I couldn't agree more with what you're saying. This information deserves to be seen!

[Dawn]

I would like to send this to Tyrone Yates & cronies who have indicated that they are in opposition to OH HB79 (remove PB from ORC) because it is a tool in the city's war on drugs. They have stated that the dogs show them where the drugs are. The Cleveland Reps are opposed to the bill too. Civil Liberties, what are those?

[Pitties Place]

Perhaps if enough of these officials continue making their statements regarding needing this law to target potential criminals, or to find the drugs, the ACLU might take an interest?

[BrianC]

As someone that lives in Ohio (Columbus), I can tell you the entire city of Cincinnati is whack when it comes to pretty much anything. Personally, I wish we could just give Cincy to Kentucky and be done with it.

[Lonna]

I USED to live in Cincinnati, thank god no more...EVER!! It is one ass backward town, most of the people are extremely ignorant and it is about 5 years behind the rest of the country. There are no "bad" dogs...only bad owners.

[Gretchen Uno]

Cincinnati is my birth city but I have not lived there for years.I'm now living in Texarkana,Ar. and I thought our city council was lacking in common sense but Cincy has it beat by a long shot. Good God, where did their logic go, down the river to N.O.?