http://www.milehighnews.com/1editorialbody.lasso?-token.folder=2007-10-04&-token.story=204020.114125&-token.subpub=
You can contact the City of Arvada at
City of Arvada
8101 Ralston Road
P.O. Box 8101
Arvada, CO 80001-8101
Phone: 720-898-7000
You can submit an email complaint at this address. I was able to lodge a complaint agaisnt the City of Arvada using their web form. It worked with me submiting my city and state and email and phone number. Please help by calling and lodgeing a complaint via email.
http://user.govoutreach.com/arvada/support.php
From an email I received today asking for help. Please cross-post
"tedterroux@att.net" wrote: From: "tedterroux@att.net"
To: TedTerroux@att.net
Subject: A dog's plea for help
Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2007 17:49:06 +0000
I am sending this blind-copy only to all of the 300+ dog-lovers in my e-mail address book. Most of you are familiar with me through dog training and rescue circles and are very aware of my care and concerns for our 4-legged friends. I have a particular concern right now for a dog that has been kept in a 3' x 6' "closet" for the past two and a half months - without one second of freedom outside of this "closet" and I'd like your help in getting him out - and the court is in the way.
The Case: Some of you may have seen or read news reports about a German Shepherd in Arvada named Rolo that bit a woman in the back of the leg in August. This case became newsworthy because of the severity of the sentence as compared to the severity of the crime. While animal control officers and paramedics officially described the bite as a scratch, the judge sentenced this first time offender to death. The owner, Laura Hagan, appealed but has been required to keep the dog at Table Mountain Animal Center in a 3' x 6' cage with no time allowed out of the cage and no human contact except for what Laura can spend between working and sleeping during visiting hours. She's a nurse and her schedule often conflicts with those hours. As of yet, no hearing has been scheduled.
The Cause: We can all debate the finer points of dog bite severity, whether or not a dog can be rehabilitated or when a dog should or shouldn't be euthanized, but those aren't the issues I'm most concerned about today. Ten weeks of being incarcerated in this small cage has begun to take its toll on this dog. His physical and mental health have been slowly deteriorating while he is awaiting his appeal. Laura's attorney has worked hard to keep after the City of Arvada to get this case pushed forward to keep Rolo from withering away and dying while he's in the care of Table Mountain Animal Center. The staff at TMAC has been helpful and sympathetic, but they have to follow Judge Boyle's order which results in Rolo not being allowed out of the cage - ever.
The Event: The wheels of justice are turning too slowly for Rolo. Laura has organized a protest to take place at the Arvada Municipal Building this Friday, November 2nd from 11 am to 2 pm. She has talked 9NEWS and FOX31 into coming out (again) to cover the story and she is working on more.
What You Can Do: If you'd like to let the City of Arvada know how inhumane it is to keep this lengthy process in place, Laura would like you to attend her protest - not just for Rolo but for all the dogs that will inevitably be placed in this situation again. The news coverage of this event will likely have an impact on how dogs are processed in other jurisdictions as well. If you can't attend, perhaps a note or a phone call to the Arvada City Attorney's Office would be helpful. Please share this with any other dog-lovers that might be sympathetic!
Skuldoggery? It is possible that the foot-dragging in Arvada is intentional. I have heard some insiders at other jurisdictions say that judges like to hold these cases off as long as possible because the cases often "solve themselves" with time. Many dogs in these situations develop severe physical or psychological problems during lengthy incarcerations which result in the owner voluntarily euthanizing their dog. This way the jurisdiction doesn't experience public outcries for wrongly ordering dogs to their deaths or public outcries from the other side for letting the dog go back home!
Ted Terroux
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Ted Terroux's Canine College
9797 W. Colfax, Unit 3TT
Lakewood, CO 80215
303-232-1034
tedterrouxdogtraining.com
9NEWS - Article - Owner trying to save dog from death sentence