Do I need an attorney? (lawyer, work, home)

[brosati]

I went to my arraignment yesterday. The District Attorney made no offer to negotiate or lesson my charge, so when the judge asked me how I plead, I said “Not Guilty.” My preliminary hearing has been set for next Thursday, February 28th. I thought this would all be over by now, but it looks like its just starting.

I was able to get a copy of the full complaint: two counts of “did willfully and unlawfully own, possess, house, shelter, quarter or in any way have under his control a vicious animal, to wit: a Labrador which bit, attempted to bite, attacked, attempted to attack or otherwise constituted a physical threat to humans or domestic animals.”

Apparently, even if my dogs did not bite the other dog (which I believe is the case here) an “attempt to attack or otherwise constitute a physical threat” is all that is needed to brand a dog as vicious. I know my dogs did not attack anyone or anything, but if the lady claims that she felt physically threatened and pressed charges against me for that, what defense do I have?

My attorney will be with me when I go back to Court on Thursday.

[guinnessjim]

dude

i am so sorry...this never seems to end.

i think a counter suit is a must as this is going to end up costing you money and time over a stupid issue. i have to assume the lady pushed for this , as i know of numerous incident where peoples dogs have gotten into fight at the park, the cops and animal control were called, and nothing ever came of it.

esp. considering you did far more than your part in paying that vet bill.

again, man...sorry to hear.

hoping for the best.

[swagger]

This is just so, so wrong. I hope you come out of this unscathed.

[jfkIII]

sigh...it's truly a dog-eat-dog world out there!

[Brian Barson]

Hopefully you win this, or she drops the charges, and DEFINATELY countersue. She has wasted your hard earned money, and most importantly, your time.

[swagger]

Guys... I think some of you are misunderstanding the situation... He's not being sued by the lady in any civil matter - he's being charged with a crime. The lady has nothing to do with this beyond reporting the initial incident. Once the prosecutor got a hold of the case, she was completely out of the picture. She probably couldn't get this dropped if she wanted to.

At least, that's how I understand it...

[brosati]

Originally Posted by swagger

Guys... I think some of you are misunderstanding the situation... He's not being sued by the lady in any civil matter - he's being charged with a crime. The lady has nothing to do with this beyond reporting the initial incident. Once the prosecutor got a hold of the case, she was completely out of the picture. She probably couldn't get this dropped if she wanted to.

At least, that's how I understand it...

In a way you are correct.

As I sat there in Court I was able to observe other cases. I kept hearing the District Attorney arguing that he was looking for justice on behalf of the victim. He would try to convince the judge to impose strict fines or harsh punishments for the sake of the victim whose voice could not be heard.

If the lady who had me charged is considered to be the victim here, then I guess she is still somewhat involved. If I’m ordered to pay a large fine, or forced to give up my dogs, then justice will have been served on behalf of this poor innocent victim.

[dynimagelv]

Sounds to me like a "New Hire" DA that has to 'make his bones' to get off the 'dog Squad'

To bad it couldn't have been David Roger....he couldn't get a conviction with a confession.

[guinnessjim]

ok...then is it possible to file something against the system for wasting tax payer money (not to mention brosati's time and money) on a case that should have never gotten this far?

w/ nothing other than a complaint w/ no actual evidence (the vet bill actually supports that nothing happened), the system is spending time (aka $) pursuing nothing. i guess there are no other pressing matters in our court system...

[sheriff]

I saw the greatest billboard the other night, can't remember where. Says: "Can you sue your attorney"? Seems the sharks want to feed on the other sharks. What happened to the good old days, when advertising by lawyers was deemed unethical?