Manatee County hearing officer agrees to reopen case involving Padi the dog

MANATEE -- A hearing officer has agreed to reopen the hearing on whether Padi, a male Labrador mix that bit a child, should be euthanized, according to Manatee County government.

The decision came after County Attorney Mickey Palmer instructed Chief Assistant County Attorney Robert Eschenfelder to file a request with the hearing officer to reopen the hearing for "the purpose of entertaining testimony of provocation in the nature of 'tormenting, abusing or assaulting the dog,'" according to an email sent to county commissioners Friday morning. The language is from Florida statute 767.12(1)(b).

"Some good news to start the weekend: The special hearing officer in the Padi case has agreed to reconvene the hearing and will allow provocation to be presented as evidence in the case. More details next week," reads a statement posted on the county government's Facebook page late Friday.

The reopening of the hearing comes a day after the

hearing officer notified the county the decision in the case would come between Monday and Wednesday instead of Friday, July 31, as initially expected.

Euthanization is mandated by Florida's dangerous dog law, which states: "If a dog that has not been declared dangerous attacks and causes severe injury to or death of any human, the dog shall be immediately confiscated by an animal control authority ... and thereafter destroyed in an expeditious and humane manner."

The law defines serious injury as "any physical injury that results in broken bones, multiple bites, or disfiguring lacerations requiring sutures or reconstructive surgery."

The law allows a hearing with the pet owner, but does not provide any exceptions due to motivations of the animal.

On Tuesday, more than 100 people came to the Manatee County Commission meeting pleading for commissioners to free Padi. After the legal advice of the Manatee County Attorney's Office, which advised the commission it would be "unlawful" to revert backward in the Padi case, the commissioners unanimously approved adding a request to its legislative platform for state lawmakers to revise the Florida dangerous dog law.

On June 4, Manatee County Animal Services took Padi into custody for a dangerous dog investigation after an incident at Pet Clinic, 714 60th St. Court E., Bradenton, when the veterinary clinic owner's dog bit a child's left ear, according to the incident report.

The office of state Rep. Greg Steube, R-Sarasota, said Thursday the commission's proposed revision of state language had been sent to bill drafting in the state Legislature. Steube said his office has received a "deluge" of emails and phone calls about Padi.

"I support more case-by-case analysis," Steube said. "Especially if there's evidence that the dog was cornered or trying to defend itself."

Drafting legislation now would not directly benefit Padi, Steube said, since the law could be changed no sooner than next year's session in January.

"There's nothing that our legislative office or the Legislature can do for Padi's case," he said.

The newly proposed language would allow a hearing to consider the unique situation resulting in the animal injuring a person provided the injury did not result in death.

"The hearing officer shall consider whether the severe injury was sustained by a person who, at the time, was unlawfully on the property or, while lawfully on the property, was tormenting, abusing or assaulting the dog or its owner or a family member, or if the dog was protecting or defending a human being within the immediate vicinity of the dog from an unjustified attack or assault," the proposed revision reads. "If any of these factors is found to have been proven by the owner at the hearing, then the hearing officer may either declare that the dog is a dangerous dog and impose such restrictions ... or order that the dog be returned to the owner with no restrictions."

Many of the people who spoke said the county interpretation of the statute should change, not the law itself, because the language is already in the statute.

Bradenton attorney Charlie Britt, who has defended similar cases, said Manatee County has a strict interpretation of the statute.

"You don't need to change the law," he said. "There is case law interpreting that statute that you don't need to rewrite the law. The case law and statute also says you as a county commission dictates what county policy should be."

Paul Gartenberg, who owns Pet Clinic and Padi, echoed Britt.

"If the dog bites somebody and requires one stitch, Mr. Eschenfelder interprets that as requiring euthanasia. That's it," he said.

The Padi investigation comes more than a year after two dogs, Buck and Bill, were put down for biting a 13-year-old boy three times. The two Australian shepherds were seized by Manatee County Animal Services shortly after the attack Dec. 24, 2012.

This story was originally published July 31, 2015 at 11:07 AM with the headline "Manatee County hearing officer agrees to reopen case involving Padi the dog ."