STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2635

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 2000

                                   RE:  S.B. No. 2441
                                        S.D. 1




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2000
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No.
2441 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO DANGEROUS DOGS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this bill, as received by your Committee, is
to create a new criminal offense for the possession of a
dangerous dog, and to amend the offense of assault in the second
degree to include the use of a dangerous dog.

     Your Committee finds that vicious dogs can terrorize an
entire neighborhood.  A lax owner of a vicious dog may allow or
even encourage the dog to threaten everyone that comes near the
dog, whether on the owner's property, on a neighbor's property,
or on the public street.  The tragic result has been dog attacks
on adults, children, and pets, resulting in serious injury or
even death.  Your Committee finds that an assault or other
offense committed using a dog would be prohibited by current law,
as a dog has been held to be a deadly weapon.  However, a dog
attack that the owner simply allowed to happen, rather than
actively promoting, may not be subject to criminal penalties
under current law.  Your Committee believes our existing laws may
need more teeth.

     Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the
Department of the Prosecuting Attorney of the City and County of
Honolulu, the West Hawaii Humane Society, and two individuals.


 
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                                   STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2635
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     Upon further consideration, your Committee has amended this
bill by deleting its contents, and substituting therefor the
following provisions, which would:

     (1)  Make it a misdemeanor for an owner to intentionally,
          knowingly, or recklessly permit the owner's dog to
          attack a person without provocation and cause bodily
          injury;

     (2)  Make it a petty misdemeanor for an owner to negligently
          permit the owner's dog to attack a person without
          provocation and cause bodily injury; and

     (3)  Make it a class C felony for an owner previously
          convicted of a misdemeanor dog attack offense to
          intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly permit the
          owner's dog to attack a person and cause serious bodily
          injury.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your
Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No.
2441, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second
Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2441, S.D. 1, and
be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Judiciary,



                                   ______________________________
                                   AVERY B. CHUMBLEY, Co-Chair



                                   ______________________________
                                   MATTHEW M. MATSUNAGA, Co-Chair

 
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