Bartholomew County is considering increasing fines for violating county regulations about “keeping of animals.”
An ordinance amendment that increases most animal-related fines received initial first-reading approval Monday from the Bartholomew County Commissioners. The final vote on the amendment is tentatively scheduled for 10 a.m. on July 22.
Under the proposal, the maximum fine for a violation would rise from $35 to $50. The last time these amounts were increased was Oct. 26, 1987, county attorney Grant Tucker said.
As a deterrent against violations, commissioner Larry Kleinhenz said issuing the 32-year-old fines is “like trying to hit (violators) with a Kleenex.”
The proposed increases were made at the recommendation of Bartholomew County Animal Control Officer Mark Case, who told the commissioners most of the increased fines deal specifically with regulations concerning dogs.
“These increases gives us a little more teeth,” Case told the commissioners. “If we up the fines, (violators) might start complying.”
However, Kleinhenz said he felt the proposed fines are still relatively low.
“I don’t think these fees are exorbitant or extravagant at all,” Commissioner Carl Lienhoop.
But there is a separate fine for every animal the violator owns, which means if a $50 fine is levied against the owner of two dogs, the fine goes up to $100, Case said.
The existing ordinance states the listed fines apply only if the person pays it within five days of receiving the violation. If the person does not comply quickly, things could start getting expensive, county attorney Grant Tucker said.
Failure to appear at the county treasurer’s office to pay the fine within five days could result in the violator being summoned to appear before a judge, Tucker said.
If the person is found guilty, the least expensive outcome would be an order to pay about $120 in court costs. In contrast, the most expensive outcome is a maximum $500 fine for misdemeanor violations, the current ordinance states.
A judge could deem each day as a separate infraction if the issue is not resolved, and violators could be required to make full restitution for any damage or injury to persons or property, the ordinance states.
With that said, both Case and the commissioners emphasized there are not many violators, and that fines are levied only as a last resort.
“There have been very few occasions where we automatically fine a person,” Case said.
Instead, violators are usually given a verbal warning, followed by a second written warning if the issue is not resolved in a timely manner, the animal control officer said.
In most cases, it’s only when both warnings are ignored that fines are considered, Case said.
[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”Proposed new fines ” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
The following increases for violations of local regulations regarding the treatment of animals received initial approval Monday from the Bartholomew County Commissioners. The final vote on the ordinance amendment containing the increases is tentatively scheduled for 10 a.m. on Monday, July 22.
- At Large – $50 (up from $20)
- Confinement – $50 (up from $35) for animals that have bitten or scratched people or have rabies. $35 (up from $20) for animals in heat.
- Vicious animal – $50 (up from $20)
- Noise – $35 (up from $20)
- Trespass – $35 (up from $20)
- Bites/injuries – $35 (up from $20)
- Food, shelter – $50 (up from $35)
- Ill treatment – $50 (up from $35)
- Abandonment – $50 (up from $35)
- Beating – $50 (up from $35)
- Poison – $50 (up from $35)
- Death – $50 (up from $35)
- Wild animal – $35 (up from $15)
- Rabies – $50 (no previous separate fine listed)
- Impoundment – $50 (no previous separate fine listed)
[sc:pullout-text-end]
