(PA) Dinniman proposes bills to tighten law regarding shooting of pets harming livestock

[The Straight Story]

Dinniman proposes bills to tighten law regarding shooting of pets harming livestock

When a Chester County man shot and killed his neighbors' Bernese mountain dogs, which he said were threatening his sheep, the uproar led to criminal charges against the farmer.

And the case also could lead to changes in state law. State Sen. Andrew Dinniman (D., Chester) plans to introduce bills that would fine-tune legal language to address the question of when deadly force against domestic pets is justified.

Dinniman said one of the bills, which would be introduced before the end of next week, was directly inspired by the Chester Springs shootings, in which FedEx driver and sheep farmer Gabriel Pilotti shot and killed dogs belonging to his neighbors Mary and William Bock.

Pilotti initially said the dogs were pursuing his sheep. Under state law, property owners who see dogs going after livestock have the right to kill them.

Dinniman is looking to tighten that law. Under his proposal, property owners would be able to kill dogs only if they pursue livestock "with the apparent intent to harm," he said.

http://articles.philly.com/2013-03-04/news/37412971_1_pet-owners-dog-and-cat-owners-driver-and-sheep-farmer

[onehandle]

1. Cue the 'stand your ground' crowd to somehow claim this is a slippery slope. nt

[enough]

2. Seems like an odd way to write a bill, depending upon somebody's

judgement about an animal's "apparent intent." How long do you have to watch the scene before you make a judgement about the animal's intention?

And what about a situation (common with sheep) where livestock can be harmed just by being chased, even if the dog is chasing the sheep just for fun, with absolutely no intent to harm.

This is my district. Andy Dinniman is a good guy and is trying to do the right thing, but this seems convoluted.