Pit bull terriers have been considered an illegal breed in Prince George鈥檚 County, Maryland, for several decades, though the law hasn鈥檛 really been enforced to the fullest extent in recent years. Now, it may be going away entirely.
would both strengthen penalties against dogs that are deemed dangerous, but also allow people to register pit bulls in the county 鈥� and even adopt them from county animal shelters. It鈥檚 being pushed by Council Chair Ed Burroughs, who said the current 1996 law just doesn鈥檛 work.
鈥淲e have between 20,000 to 25,000 pit bulls in our system in the county right now,鈥� Burroughs said. 鈥淪o what this bill will do is actually strengthen the penalties against all dangerous dogs, strengthen the leash law and strengthen the consequences for having dangerous dogs.鈥�
While the bill is still a few weeks away from a final vote, if approved, it would increase penalties for so-called dangerous dogs to up to $3,000, and make clear that any breed of dog could be deemed dangerous or potentially dangerous.
It would also start allowing residents to adopt pit bulls from county animal shelters after they pass certain tests proving they aren鈥檛 aggressive. Burroughs said the county has long struggled to determine what is and isn鈥檛 a pit bull, essentially going off someone鈥檚 determination made by looking at the dog.
鈥淚t’s completely arbitrary and made up,鈥� Burroughs said. 鈥淭hey’re guessing. The same person labeled a dog differently during different periods of time.”
He added that the county is spending millions of dollars in court trying to enforce the dated law.
However, Burroughs admitted there are still some concerns about the wording in the bill, so it鈥檚 possible his effort to overturn the law this year will stall out; though for now, it鈥檚 on track for a final vote Nov. 18. If it does get held between now and then, he said he plans to bring it back next year.
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