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(a) Subject to Seizure. Upon the receipt of a signed complaint, or upon the personal observation of an Animal Control Officer, or a representative of the Department of Public Health or Police Department, that a dog is vicious and dangerous, and said dog is on its owner, guardian, keeper or harborer's property, the Animal Control Officer, or the Department of Public Health or Police Department representative, may find the dog presents a danger and is subject to seizure and impoundment. Upon a finding that the dog is subject to seizure, written notice of such finding shall be made to the owner, guardian, keeper or any adult in apparent control or possession of the dog. Prior to the seizure of the dog, the owner, guardian, or keeper of the dog shall be entitled to a hearing as described in paragraph (c) of this section.
(b) Immediate Seizure.
(i) Should any Animal Control Officer, representative of the Department of Public Health or the Police Department determine that probable cause exists to believe that a dog is vicious and dangerous and cannot be properly controlled, such dog is subject to immediate seizure. The owner, guardian, or keeper of the dog shall be entitled to a hearing upon seizure as described in paragraph (c) of this section, and upon the hearing the owner or guardian of any dog found to be vicious or dangerous shall be assessed the costs of sheltering the dog and of administering the ordinance.
(ii) Upon the receipt of a signed complaint, or upon the personal observation of an Animal Control Officer, or a representative of the Department of Public Health or Police Department, that a dog has killed or wounded, or assisted in killing or wounding any domestic animal, or has attacked, assaulted, bit or otherwise injured any person or assisted in attacking, assaulting, biting or otherwise injuring any person, such dog shall be subject to immediate seizure and impoundment. The owner, guardian, or keeper of the dog shall be entitled to a hearing upon seizure as described in paragraph (c) of this section.
(c) (i) Prior to the seizure of any dog authorized by paragraph (a) and within three days of the seizure of any dog pursuant to paragraph (b) a hearing officer shall inform, in writing, the owner, guardian, or keeper of the dog that the person's dog is alleged to be vicious and dangerous and be subject to penalties under this ordinance. Unless the hearing is waived by the owner, guardian, or keeper of the dog, or the hearing is scheduled on an agreed-upon date, the hearing officer shall fix a time not less than 15 nor more than 90 days from date that the enforcement agency locates the dog and/or the owner, guardian or keeper, and fix a place for said hearing and cause all parties to be notified, not less than 10 days before the date of such hearing. The hearing may be informal and the rules of evidence not strictly observed. It shall not be necessary, for the City, to prove that the owner, guardian, or keeper of the dog knew that the dog was vicious and dangerous. Within 15 days following the hearing, the hearing officer shall issue his or her decision to all parties.
(ii) Should the hearing officer find the dog to be vicious and dangerous, the hearing officer shall order the dog be registered pursuant to Section 42.2, and that the dog be spayed or neutered. The hearing officer may, in addition, order other remedies as may be appropriate for the safety of the public, including, but not limited to, an order that the dog and the owner, guardian, keeper and any person in control of the dog attend and complete a basic obedience course under an approved and recognized obedience trainer or dog-training organization. If the hearing officer finds that the owner, guardian, keeper, or other person in control of the dog has not or cannot adequately control his or her dogs, the hearing officer may also prohibit that person or persons from owning or possessing dogs for a period of three years from the date of the order.
(iii) In the event the hearing officer concludes that the dog is vicious and dangerous and that the health, safety and welfare of the community is not adequately addressed by the requirements provided in Section 42.3(c)(ii), the hearing officer may order the dog destroyed.
(iv) The decision of the hearing officer is final.
(Added by Ord. 408-87, App. 10/9/87; amended by Ord. 5-03, File No. 021645, App. 1/24/2003; Ord. 12-05, File No. 041544, App. 1/21/2005; Ord. 267-05, File No. 051606, App. 11/22/2005)
(a) If charged as an infraction, the penalty upon conviction of such person shall be a fine not exceeding $500. A second or subsequent violation within any 12-month period from the initial incident will be punishable as a misdemeanor.
(b) If charged as a misdemeanor, the penalty upon conviction of such person, shall be imprisonment in the County Jail for a period not to exceed one year or by a fine not exceeding $1,000, or by both such fine and imprisonment. Upon conviction of a misdemeanor the court may prohibit the person from owning, keeping or otherwise being in control of a dog within the City and County for a period of one year. Violation of that prohibition shall constitute a misdemeanor.
(c) The complaint charging such violation shall specify whether the violation charged is a misdemeanor or an infraction.
(d) Allocation of fees and fines collected. All fees and the City's share of all fines collected under this section shall be used only by the Animal Care and Control Department to fund the enforcement of the vicious and dangerous dog program as set forth in this Section.
(Added by Ord. 408-87, App. 10/9/87; amended by Ord. 267-05, File No. 051606, App. 11/22/2005)
Any provision of Sections 42 through 42.3, may be enforced by the Department of Public Health, the Police Department, or the City Animal Control Officer, or any authorized designee. Complaints of any violations of Sections 42 through 42.3 subject to penalties under Section 42.4 shall be presented to the District Attorney for prosecution.
(Added by Ord. 408-87, App. 10/9/87)
Subject to the budgetary and fiscal provisions of the Charter, the City is authorized to offer rewards not exceeding $250 to any person providing information leading to the arrest of any person for violations of prohibitions against the training of a dog for dog-fight exhibitions. The Board of Supervisors may authorize said rewards by resolution upon request of the Department of Public Health, Animal Control Officer or the Mayor.
(Added by Ord. 408-87, App. 10/9/87)
If any part or provision of Sections 42 through 42.6, or application thereof, to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the section, including the application of such part or provision to other persons or circumstances, shall not be affected thereby and shall continue in full force and effect. To this end, the provisions of the sections are severable.
(Added by Ord. 408-87, App. 10/9/87)
(a) Definition. For the purposes of this Article, the word "pit bull" includes any dog that is an American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire Bull Terrier, or any dog displaying the physical traits of any one or more of the above breeds, or any dog exhibiting those distinguishing characteristics that conform to the standards established by the American Kennel Club ("AKC") or United Kennel Club ("UKC") for any of the above breeds. The AKC and UKC standards for the above breeds are listed on their websites as well as online through the Animal Care and Control Department's ("Department") website.
(b) Determination of Breed. If an owner, guardian or keeper is unsure as to whether or not his/her unspayed and unneutered dog is a pit bull, s/he may make an appointment with the Department at which a Department staff member shall make a determination as to whether or not the dog is a pit bull. If the dog owner, guardian or keeper wishes to appeal the determination that the dog is a pit bull, within five business days of the staff member's determination s/he may request a hearing before the Department's Director or his/her designee. The hearing shall be held no more than 30 days after the Director receives the request. The hearing may be informal and rules of evidence not strictly observed. The decision of the Director or his/her designee is final.
(Added by Ord. 268-05, File No. 051607, App. 11/22/2005)
No person may own, keep, or harbor any dog within the City and County of San Francisco that the person in possession knew, or should have known, was a pit bull that has not been spayed or neutered unless:
(a) The pit bull is under eight weeks of age;
(b) The pit bull cannot be spayed or neutered without a high likelihood of suffering serious bodily harm or death due to a physical abnormality. A veterinarian must certify such a condition, determine the time frame after which the pit bull can be spayed/neutered. Within 30 days of the operative date of this ordinance, or within 30 days of, taking possession or ownership of an unspayed or unneutered pit bull, the owner, guardian or keeper must submit such documentation to be verified by the Department;
(c) The pit bull has been present in the City and County of San Francisco for less than thirty days;
(d) The owner, guardian or keeper has obtained, or has submitted an application for a breeding permit in accordance with Section 44 et seq. of the San Francisco Health Code;
(e) Determination of breed is under appeal pursuant to Section 43(b) above; or
(f) The pit bull is a show dog. Within 30 days of the operative date of this ordinance, or within 30 days of taking possession or ownership of an unspayed or unneutered pit bull, the owner, guardian or keeper must submit a copy of the organization papers (AKC or UKC) to the Department of Animal Care and Control demonstrating the pedigree information and show dog registration and that the dog conforms with the same breeding permit guidelines set forth in Sections 44.1(a)(3)(A), 44.1(a)(3)(B), 44.1(a)(3)(C) and 44.1(a)(3)(D).
(Added by Ord. 268-05, File No. 051607, App. 11/22/2005)
Violation of Section 43.1 may result in the following penalties:
(a) A first violation may result in the Department impounding the pit bull and disposing of the pit bull in accordance with Sections 41.7(a) and 41.9 of the San Francisco Health Code. A first violation shall be an infraction punishable by a fine not to exceed $500. In order for the owner, guardian or keeper to reclaim the pit bull from the Department, in addition to paying the other charges and fees set out in Section 41.10, one of the following must occur:
(1) The Department shall have a veterinarian spay or neuter the dog. The dog owner, guardian or keeper shall pay a deposit of $100 prior to the procedure and will be charged the fee for such services consisting of the actual expense incurred as established by the Department. There may be additional fees for any extraordinary care provided.
(2) In the alternative, the owner, guardian or keeper shall arrange for another veterinarian within the City and County of San Francisco to spay or neuter and shall pay the Department a fee of $60, which shall cover the Department's costs of delivering the dog to a vet of the owner, guardian or keeper's choosing. The Department shall deliver the dog to the vet, and the vet shall release the dog to the owner, guardian or keeper only after the spaying or neutering is complete.
(3) At the discretion of the Director, or his/her designee, the Director may release the dog to the owner, guardian or keeper provided that the owner, guardian or keeper signs an affidavit that s/he will have the dog spayed or neutered within two weeks and will provide documentation verifying that the spaying or neutering occurred upon completion. If the owner, guardian or keeper fails to have his/her pit bull spayed or neutered as agreed in the affidavit, the Department shall have the authority to impound the dog, and the owner, guardian or keeper may be charged with a second violation under 43.2(b), below.
(4) In the event that the Director or his/her designee determines that payment of any fees by the owner, guardian or keeper of a pit bull which is impounded or otherwise taken into custody would cause extreme financial difficulty to the owner, guardian or keeper, the Director or his/her designee may, at his/her discretion, waive all or part of the fees necessary for compliance with this section.
(b) A second violation of this section by the owner, guardian or keeper, shall be a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in the County Jail for a period not to exceed six months or by a fine not to exceed $1,000, or by both such fine and imprisonment. In addition, a second violation may result in the Department impounding the pit bull and disposing of the pit bull in accordance with Sections 41.7(a) and 41.9 of the San Francisco Health Code. Further, the provisions of Section 43.2(a)(1) above may apply.
(Added by Ord. 268-05, File No. 051607, App. 11/22/2005)
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