CONTINUING COVERAGE
The Dayton Daily News has reviewed hundreds of court, police and Animal Resource Center documents since the dog mauling death of Klonda Richey of Dayton. The newspaper is committed to bringing you in-depth coverage of potential changes in vicious dog legislation as a result of the Richey case.
Here are some previous stories from our team on the death of Klonda Richey and the efforts to change Ohio’s vicious dog laws since her death:
State lawmakers are looking to put tighter controls on the owners of dangerous dogs, including a statewide registry and stricter criminal penalties for violators.
State Reps. Terry Blair, R-Washington Twp., and Roland Winburn, D-Dayton, introduced House Bill 541 on Monday after months of meetings with local officials in the wake of the mauling death of Klonda Richey in Dayton.
Richey, 57, was mauled to death outside of her home at 31 E. Bruce Ave. by two mixed mastiff dogs in the early morning hours of Feb. 7. The dogs were owned by Richey’s neighbors, Andrew Nason, 29, and Julie Custer, 26, who lived at 35 E. Bruce Ave. When police responded to Richey’s home on the report of a naked body outside, the dogs charged them. Officers shot and killed the dogs.
Richey had complained multiple times about her neighbors and their dogs.
Thirteen complaints were filed with the Animal Resource Center and another 46 calls were made to the Montgomery County Regional Dispatch Center related to the Nason-Custer home between December 2011 and Richey’s death on Feb. 7.
Some of the Animal Resource Center calls were anonymous but 23 of the calls to the dispatch center were from Richey or associated with her phone number. She also sought a civil stalking protection order against Nason but ultimately was denied in April 2013.
To date, no one has been charged in connection with Richey’s death. The Montgomery County Prosecutor’s office said they will present the case to the grand jury. Earlier this month, a civil wrongful death suit was filed by Richey’s estate against Nason and Custer.
The proposed legislation would revise current state law on vicious and dangerous dogs to do the following:
* Require destruction of dogs that kill humans or companion animals;
* Require investigators to notify the dog’s owner that there has been a complaint, even if no citation is issued for a violation;
* Mandate that the dog owner respond within 48-hours of receiving notice of a complaint or be fined $25. If the owner fails to respond within seven days, a court may issue an arrest warrant for the dog owner; and
* Require the owner to keep a dog leashed or penned regardless of whether the dog is on the owner’s property.
Doug Jahnke, who knew Richey for 25 years and who dated her off-and-on for the past three years said confinement and restraint are critical pieces of new legislation.
“Those dogs ran freely in his yard,” Jahnke said of Nason and Custer’s dogs. “There should be a minimum to the type of fencing they’ve got.”
Richey, he said, had been erecting a fence the dogs wouldn’t be able to jump but he said, the dogs ran around the fence. At one point, he said, he confronted the dogs. “There was nothing there restricting those dogs,” he said.
The bill also would allow owners accused of violating the dog law to assert in their defense that the dog was teased, tormented or abused by a person or that the dog attacked while the person was trespassing or committing some other criminal act on the dog owner’s property.
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley said city officials gave lawmakers suggestions on how the state law could be improved but she has yet to read House Bill 541.
“I am pleased the at the legislators are taking this issue seriously considering someone was killed over the weakness in these laws,” Whaley said.
It appears that elements suggested by Dayton city officials are included in the bill, such as requiring the animal owner to respond to any warning or notice posted where the dog resides. The state constitution does not allow municipalities to enact laws with a penalty more stringent than a misdemeanor so stronger state laws are needed, the Dayton officials said in February.
Cathy Petersen, spokesperson for Montgomery County, said Mark Kumpf, director of the Animal Resource Center has not seen the legislation yet and because the Klonda Richey case is before the grand jury, he can’t comment.
Jahnke said enforcement will be key to making sure new laws work. Stiffer penalties, he hopes, will make people take notice.
“Laws are good but I don’t think they are enforced very well,” he said. “I don’t think people are held responsible for the actions of their dogs. It’s all taken very lightly.
“I have to stop and think once in a while, there’s one less person in my life because of dogs. This person isn’t here anymore because of a pair of dogs. Something has to be done about that.”
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