[Lowerdeck]

Originally Posted by Snowman27

And I agree with Madoff. He should not have had criminal prosecution either.

Except he actually did commit a criminal offense.

[jaydez]

Originally Posted by renovating

Pet owners of any kind are responsible for their pets. My dog bites you...I am responsible for that as his owner. I pay for your medical bills and time off from work, etc.

This case was more than just a mere accident. The owner knew her chimp was prone to violent outbursts hence the sedative he was given and she is accountable for the attack.

Yes, true. However, the woman who was attacked was a good friend of the chimp's owner and knew very well what the chimp was capable of and its violent history.

I feel bad that the woman was attacked like that. I feel only her and the chimp's owner are responsible. I also hope the civil case against the state does not go to court. This is not a fault of the state.

[Yankeerose00]

What about situations where an owner knows their pet is dangerous? I believe owners need to be as responsible for their pet as they would be for a child. Remember the case in San Francisco where a Presa Canario dog killed a woman who was simply coming home and attempting to let herself into her apartment? The dog leaped on her and mauled her. They found that the owners were drug dealers and they found books in their apartment that talked about training a dog to kill and fight. In this case the dog was as much a loaded weapon as gun.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marjorie_Knoller


I don't know...I believe that people need to be responsible for their pets and should be held accountable especially when they know that pet is dangerous. This chimp had a history of outbursts. I don't believe this owner knew just how dangerous he was, granted, but she knew he could be violent.
It's hard to say in this case because how often do you ever hear of somebody's pet chimp mauling a person? Never. So this case is unique itself. But I guess I'm just relating it to when I lived down south and saw so many people who thought it was cool to fight their pit bulls and keep them chained in the yard. There were so many cases of pitbulls or rottweilers biting and even killing people (usually kids) and the owners always got off way too easy. If a loved family pet bits that's one thing. But if it can be shown that you were teaching an animal to be dangerous, OR you know that an animal is dangerous and you don't do anything about it, you're repsonsible for what that animal does. Otherwise, who is responsible?
But anyway, in this case, the fact that the state let her have this animal is ludicrous. How many times do you read that wild animals should never be kept as pets and this is why!
If I was that woman who was attacked, I'd be speed dialing Dr Kavorkian because no way would I want to live like that. It's horrible and my heart breaks for her.

[4johnny]

The owner did drug the chimp up with xanax that might have provoked the attack. She should be held responsible for that move...