Settlement reached in Dayton dog mauling death of Klonda Richey.

Six years after the mauling death of Klonda Richey, a settlement has been reached between the family of Ms. Richey and Montgomery County Commissioners.  Montgomery County will pay Richey's sister and brother 3.5 million dollars.  Montgomery County commissioners are expected to approve the settlement on March 31st.  The settlement will allow Montgomery to avoid a messy trial in the wrongful death case.  Per the Dayton Daily News " “This lovely lady passed away. You never get over that,” said Montgomery County Commission President Judy Dodge. “But it has been dragging on for a while … Nobody wants to go through a trial.”  

No, Ms. Dodge, this lovely lady did not peacefully "pass away" she was brutally mauled to death by her neighbor's dogs and her death was predictable, she predicted it herself.   Per the attorney representing the Richey estate  “The evidence is clear that Ms. Richey experienced prolonged conscious pain and suffering prior to her death.”

  Photo by WKEF News of the snow in front of Klonda Richey's home saturated with her blood.


Ms. Richey's thirteen complaints to the then County Dog Warden Mark Kumpf, made from 2012 until the time of her death in 2014, received no response other than sternly worded post-it notes left on the door of neighbors and dog owners Andrew Nason and Julie Custer. There was absolutely no follow-up to these post-it notes because Kumpf was "unaware" that follow-up was required.  Here is a quote from Kumpf, the link is no longer live.  " Per WDTN  Numerous warnings were left for the dog owners at 35 East Bruce Avenue, but no action was taken. Kumpf says a warning is simply a notice that an officer responded to a complaint. There’s really no follow-up after that unless the owner calls the Animal Resource Center to find out more." This is the problem, zero follow- up. No Dangerous Dog designation was ever produced, no fines, no containment orders, no orders to obtain insurance.  This was the typical response to complaints made to dog warden Kumpf, a dog warden with multiple human fatalities in his county during his watch due to his refusal to enforce the law.  Please read the 2016 ruling from the Court of Appeals of Ohio Second Appellate District Montgomery County for an eye-opening explanation of Kumpf's business model.  That model included, in addition to the refusal to enforce the law, refusal to answer phone calls, destruction of records, instructions to his staff to write fewer citations and zero follow-up to post-it note citations.

Unlike most high-dollar settlements, this one will result in actual payment.  This payment may set a precedent for other victim-led lawsuits against other city Animal Control departments where priority currently favors inaction (sloth) protecting the owners of violent dogs over the safety of the public.   Will it change how laws are enforced?  Less sloth and more actual protection for peaceful people in their own communities?  What a refreshing change this would be.

Montgomery County went into damage control overdrive after the Dayton deaths of Richey and 7-month-old Jonathan Quarles Jr, killed by a relative's pit bull that was known to the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center as a dangerous dog but was allowed to remain in the community. In an effort to salvage their reputation Montgomery County Commissioners sponsored a two-day seminar for law enforcement and animal control officers from all over Ohio, links are no longer live.  Per WDTN News " Officers, along with animal shelter employees, and municipal and county prosecutors met inside Sinclair Community College for a seminar to discuss ways to improve the response and investigation of dog mauling cases. The group also took time to discuss changing and adding legislation and asking legislators to strengthen dog laws."  The seminar was held prior to the Dayton pit bull mauling death of Maurice Brown.  Dog Warden Kumpf failed to attend?  Was asleep in the back row? 

Bills strengthening Ohio dog laws still languish in committees in the Ohio State House to the shame of all Ohio lawmakers. 

But, I digress.  Allowing Kumpf to remain in his position for years after his failures became public knowledge and holding a seminar for Animal Control professionals did little to protect the interests of the Montgomery County Commissioners or soften the blow to local taxpayers. This is a big lawsuit and it should have a big impact.  


Mark Kumpf at the time of his firing by Montgomery County commissioners.  Kumpf is now serving as head of Animal Control in Detroit, another city where death by dog mauling is a sad reality. Of all the possibilities, Detroit decided that Kumpf was the best choice to head their mess of an animal control department? 

Dayton infant killed inside the family home after being attacked by the family pit bull. Has breed neutral law made Ohio safer?

1/9/2020
Dayton Ohio
Montgomery County

Four-month-old McKenzie Terwill died after being attacked by the family pit bull inside the family home.  The pit bull has been quarantined and the attack is under investigation.  McKenzie is the eighteenth Ohio resident killed by dogs since the Ohio Legislature allowed Best Friends Animal Society to re-write state law.  Best Friends promised that their new breed-neutral law would make Ohio communities safer.  Is anyone shocked that the promise has proven false? 

Nope.  In the decade prior to the change in state law Ohio had 5 dog bite-related fatalities.  In the less-than-eight-years since the passage of HB 14 Ohio has seen eighteen fatal dog attacks. Stunning.

Our thanks to former Representative Barbara Sears and Ledy Vankavage's legal department at Best  Friends Animal Society for bringing this disaster to Ohio.



Update - A neighbor reported that dogs at the home where the infant died were "mean, vicious, barkers, chasers" and caused people to avoid the location.  The investigation is being handled by the Special Victims Unit.

Update - Per the Dayton Daily News, "The Dayton Daily News today obtained an affidavit written by Dayton Police Detective Karina Sulek seeking permission to search and collect evidence in the case.  Sulek wrote when officers arrived at the home on the 100 block of Vermont Avenue on Jan. 9, the baby’s father, Parker Terwell, was on the front porch with the baby’s remains.

“Mr. Terwell said he just arrived home, and his girlfriend and mother of the child, Mary Shoup, was asleep on the living room sofa,” the affidavit in the search warrant requests says. “Mr. Terwell informed officers that Ms. Shoup is on prescription medication.”

In another update, this from WDTN News "The search warrant states that the prescriptions that were found have side effects such as drowsiness, cognitive dysfunction, and insomnia. The father also told officers that he threw out a bong before they arrived."  

Mark Kumpf finally out as Montgomery County Dog Warden. Why did it take this long?

Mark Kumpf, the County Dog Warden in Montgomery County Ohio, who certainly makes the short list for any honors consideration for inept dog wardens, will no longer be employed by Montgomery County. Per the Dayton Daily News
"Montgomery County’s parting with longtime Animal Resources Center Director Mark Kumpf will put the beleaguered facility on a new trajectory to improve the outcome of animals in its care, both county officials and animal welfare advocates said Tuesday. 

“We feel that 2019 is going to be a transformative year for our Animal Resource Center,” said Montgomery County Administrator Michael Colbert said a day after announcing Kumpf’s employment with the county would end Friday. 

“We heard the community’s concerns, and we are making the necessary changes to address them,” he said. “Our primary goal is to improve our shelter operations, so that we can better serve our citizens and meet the needs of the animals in our care.”  

This is certainly good news.  Mr. Kumpf has been in his current position since 2006 and has the dubious honor of recording FOUR dog attacks fatal to humans in his county on his watch. Is this a record?

Why wasn't he fired after the death of Klonda Richey, the second fatal attack during his time in Montgomery County?  Richey was killed by her neighbor's dogs, dogs that she reported menacing and running at large over and over and over.  The response of the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center's staff, led by Kumpf, was to post sternly worded post-it notes on the dog owner's front door.  There was never any follow up and the dogs eventually killed Klonda Richey as she predicted.  The best Kumpf could do for Richey was place her cats after she died.

It is our understanding that the lawsuit against Kumpf filed by the family of Klonda Richey will continue to go forward.  Below is text from the ruling allowing the family to sue Kumpf personally. This quote begins on page 3 of the ruling. This is stunning stuff.   

  {¶ 5} In July 2006, Defendant-Appellee, Mark Kumpf, was hired as the Director of the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center (“ARC”) and as the Montgomery County, Ohio, Dog Warden. Kumpf was still serving in those capacities at the time of Richey’s death. Kumpf had been involved in animal control since the early 1990’s, and had changed his philosophy from an “enforcement mode” to an “education mode.” In the enforcement mode, Kumpf’s approach had been to see how many animals he could pick up, how fast the animals could be gotten off the road, and how many summonses he could write. In this mode, he averaged 100 to 150 citations per month. In contrast, Kumpf’s education approach involved issuing fewer summonses and focusing citations on the more serious cases. {¶ 6} After Kumpf came to Montgomery County in 2006, he changed the focus of the ARC from enforcement to education. The number of citations issued to citizens dropped by more than 33 percent in the first two years of his tenure. At first, Kumpf’s bosses were concerned about a drop in revenue. However, Kumpf pointed out that he had taken in 2,000 fewer animals, and that licensing and adoption revenues had increased. {¶ 7} Kumpf also instructed his deputy wardens to write fewer citations because he believed the courts were not doing their job, and were notoriously unhelpful with citation fines and enforcement. In the two years before Richey’s death, out of more than 20,000 calls about animals, only about 697 (about 3.4 percent) resulted in citations. Of 60,000 dogs in Montgomery County, only 12 were designated as “nuisance” or -4- “dangerous” dogs in 2013. {¶ 8} Kumpf was under the impression that before an animal control officer can issue a citation for a “dog at large,” the officer must witness the dog off an owner’s property and not under the owner’s immediate control. However, at Kumpf’s direction, officers were not patrolling. In addition, also at Kumpf’s direction, dispatchers routinely refused to answer phone calls requesting service during business hours. Instead, dispatchers pushed a “divert” button on the phone and calls were sent to voicemail. All of the calls Klonda Richey made to ARC went to voicemail. {¶ 9} Richey made about 13 calls to the Montgomery County Regional Dispatch Center and at least 13 calls to ARC to complain about Nason’s dogs. The problems were severe enough that Richey paid to have a fence installed between the two houses and to have a security camera pointed at Nason’s home to capture video surveillance of the dogs entering her property unrestrained and off leash. In one of the calls, Richey reported that Nason “let his aggressive pit/mastiff run loose while she was walking to work and threatened to let it have her for a treat.” Doc. #13, First Amended Complaint, ¶ 14. According to Kumpf, he met with ARC officers daily to discuss calls that had been received. As a result, Kumpf would have been aware of Richey’s calls and complaints."



It should be noted that Kumpf was also part of the team that brought changes to Ohio's laws regarding dangerous dogs in 2012.  Mr. Kumpf, as treasurer of the Ohio County Dog Wardens Association and Matt Granito as president of the organization, actively supported HB 14, written by out of state special interest Best Friends Animal Society of Kanab Utah and introduced by Toledo Representative Barbara Sears.  Kumpf and Granito, both closely associated with Best Friends, used the name of the Ohio County Dog Wardens Association while supporting the bill without actually consulting the rank and file of the group.  Many county dog wardens had serious concerns about the bill.  Those concerns proved valid.  Since passage of HB 14 in 2012 (not quite 7 years) sixteen Ohioans have been mauled to death by dogs in our state, three in Montgomery County alone.  In the DECADE prior to passage of HB 14 Ohio had five fatal attacks. Think about that.

Why did this take so long?

12/19/2018 update.

There was no tactful resignation.  Kumpf was involuntarily terminated by the county. 

October pit bull roundup. Journalism without thought is nothing more than breed advocacy with a byline. Dog fighters in Cleveland, pit bulls attack pit bulls, pit bulls kill tiny pets,

Here are examples of journalism without thought.  We begin and end this post with on same topic, reporters who don't think before the present a story.

WHIO writes about the glut of pit bulls in shelters as the result of overbreeding.  So far, we are on the same page.  Pit bull advocates admit that yes, pit bulls are overbred.  So far we are on the same page. However, history tells us that pit bull owners have no interest in neuter and spay, even when the surgery is free.  Any community can apply for grants for the purpose of neuter and spay for pit bulls only, breed specific, those with Chihuahuas or Labs are out of luck.  These grants fail to make any difference because pit bull owners breed pit bull puppies as a tax-free income source.  As an example, Several years ago Kansas City got a $100,000 grant for breed specific neuter and spay and a year later returned almost $87,000 because they could not find pit bull owners with any interest in neuter and spay.

The  Pit bull advocates interviewed by WHIO admit that pit bull owners need to be more responsible.  Again, we are on the same page.  The cure, per WHIO is "Heather Concannon, the Humane Agent for Montgomery County... says the public needs to change their perceptions of pit bulls to show people raising one responsibly takes work."  Yes, it does but pit bull advocacy fails miserably here.

No, the public does not need to change their perception of pit bulls.  The peaceful public is tired of reading about innocent people being mauled or killed.  The peaceful public is tired of burying beloved pets killed by pit bulls.  The peaceful public is tired of supporting shelters full of unplaceable pit bulls.  

Pit bull advocates and pit bull owners are the only ones capable of changing the public perception of pit bulls.  Stop breeding dogs destined to suffer and die because no one wants to bring a dangerous animal into their home. Pit bull advocates and owners need to figure out how to confine their dogs in order to protect the safety of the neighbors and their pets.  Pit bull advocates and owners need to carry insurance to cover the medical expenses of potential victims.  If pit bulls were responsibly confined to the property of the owner, not bred in wildly unsustainable numbers, and the public was assured that bankruptcy for the victim was not the natural result of a thoughtless mistake by the pit bull owner then there would be no public interest in regulating pit bulls.

Pit bull advocacy needs to clean up its own mess. 

                                                                    * * *

August 9 and August 11, 2018
Brookpark 
Cuyahoga County

Two pit bull dog bites were reported in Brookpark.  On August 9th a Lockhaven Ave resident reported that a neighbor's pit bull pushed its owner out of the way and escaped from the house.  The victim was bitten on the arm.  The victim was treated at Southwest General Hospital.  The attack was referred to Animal Control.

On August 11th a woman walking her dog on Sylvia Ave.  She and her dog walked past a pit bull, also being walked.  The victim was bitten on the leg.  The case was referred to Brookpark Animal Control.   

Brookpark regulates pit bulls. 

                                                                         * * *


8/5/2018
North Olmsted
Cuyahoga County

A North Olmsted couple was out walking their 22 pound Cocker Spaniel mix when a pit bull broke away from its handler, a SEVEN-YEAR-OLD GIRL   The pit attacked and killed the small dog.  The adult owner of the pit bull stated that the child was only holding the leash until he could come outside to walk his dog and that the pit bull "had never done anything like this before."  The pit bull owner stated that he was new in the community and was unaware that North Olmsted regulates pit bulls.  How many times do we hear this excuse?

More information was included in an article in the West Life, a neighborhood newspaper, but this is behind a paywall.  I have a copy of the article sent to me by a reader.  West Life Reporter Jeff Gallatin states that the Cocker Spaniel mix's name was Angel and she was 13 years old.  She was owned and walked by her owner, David Ostroske, a Cleveland State University police officer, and his wife Doreen.  Angel was adopted from a shelter six years ago.

The pit bull, Jax, weighed 80 pounds and was adopted from a shelter five years ago by Michael Cowan, a Marine recruiter, and his family while he was stationed in North Carolina.    The Cowans moved to North Olmsted in April.  Per the West Life "The Cowans didn't know about North Olmsted's requirements for pit bulls."   Pit bulls are banned from military housing.  How could Cowan be completely unaware that his dog might be regulated in North Olmsted?

Jax the pit bull was euthanized.  Brooke Cowan told the reporter "We're not getting another pit bull, not after something like this." "It was terrible.  We feel terrible for what happened to that dog and its family."

David and Doreen Ostroske are grieving for Angel and have no immediate plans to get another dog.
Doreen Ostroske told the reporter "We know that the dog's owner's didn't mean for this to happen, but people have to be aware of the high risks and responsibilities of owning a pit bull.  I honestly don't understand why someone would own one in a family neighborhood."  We share her thoughts and are sorry for her loss.

                                                          * * *

8/7/2018
Cleveland
Cuyahoga County

A Cleveland man, Robert Cook has been indicted for dogfighting.  Thirteen dogs were "rescued" from Cook's property.  We fully expect to find these bred for bloodsport, pit trained and tested pit bulls now housed at the City of Cleveland Kennels will be offered for adoption to the public through the City Dogs program.   As of 8/27/2018, the City of Cleveland has 92 dogs available for placement, of the 92, only 12 are not pit bulls.

Watch the video on the news link.  Classy.

Cook's mug shot.

Watch for new pit bulls in your neighborhood. Consider self-protection. Seriously.


                                                                * * *

Sandusky Ohio
9/18/2018
Erie County

A Sandusky woman, working in her yard was forced to stab a neighbor's pit bull after it entered her yard'  "  “My neighbor’s dog got loose out of her yard. It attacked my two dogs and it attacked me!” screamed Julia Parsley into the phone on Sunday evening.

It happened in the backyard of Parsley's Sandusky home.

“The dog that got out and attacked my dogs came between these, went through there, and came out right there,” Parsley said as she pointed to a wobbly fence separating her yard from her neighbor’s."

The neighbor pit bull entered her yard menacing Parsley's pit bulls then attacked her.  She stabbed it to death.  She received hospital treatment for her injuries and has a serious infection. Charges are pending against the owner of the attacking/dead pit bull.  


                                                           * * *
                                                                                                                      
8/17/2018
Twinsburg Ohio
Summit County
A woman and her dog were attacked by a pit bull in a local dog park.  Twinsburg police are looking for the dog, named Daisy, described as a pit bull weighing 40 to 60 pounds.  Anyone with knowledge of the owner please call Twinsburg police officer Caporuscio at 330-425-1234.


                                                      * * *

10/7/2018
Cleveland Ohio
Cuyahoga County

Two adults suffered what were called "significant" injuries while protecting children from a pit bull attack.  The attack was described as an "hour long rampage" by News Chanel 5.  Becky Barker and Jay Anderson responded to the screams of the children who were trapped on top of a car by the three pit bulls.  Barker was attacked immediately as she left her house to help the children.  "Barker told News 5 the pit bulls had children trapped on top of a car that was parked in front of her home, and when she stepped out to help, the pit bulls bit her multiple times in three areas of her body.

"They could have killed me, they really could have, if they would kept ripping me open like they did," Barker said.

Jay Anderson also responded. He had a screwdriver in his hand that he attempted to use as a weapon. One of the pit bulls took the screwdriver. Mr. Anderson was bitten on his legs and his back.   

EMS, the fire department and the Cleveland Dog Warden responded to the call. The dog warden seized one of the pit bulls but allowed the owner to keep two of them.  Why?

                                                        

Given that EMS, the fire department and the dog warden were called to this dumpster fire, how much did this cost the city of Cleveland taxpayers?  

Late update - Video has been posted of the rampage by these two pit bulls. PLEASE take a moment to watch it.   How will the breed advocates pressuring Parma City Council to drop that city's breed ban explain this?     

                                                                                 * * *

9/18/2018
Cleveland Ohio
Cuyahoga County

A Cleveland woman lost her beloved pet, Tyson, a tiny Lhasa Apso in front of her horrified eyes, in front of her own home.  Laura Lehmann was with her dog at the time of the attack, caught on film. The pit bull is still in the home across the street.  It has been ordered out of the city but the owner has 30 days to comply.  Where will this pit bull go?  It will most likely be relocated to another city where the history is unknown.  Will a change of address change the actual dog?  Nope, just spreading the misery around.   Is this the best we can do?  

The usual excuses have been made, the owner should be held responsible, not the breed. The prosecutor is "looking into " this situation.  Channel 19 has a reporter who owns a pit bull and has chosen to challenge a pediatrician's statements that pit bulls pose an unreasonable danger in our communities. We will see this very reporter in the next entry.

                                                           * * *

10/1/2018
Cleveland Ohio
Cuyahoga County

A Cleveland woman's dogs have been attacked, in her own fenced yard,  THREE times by a pit bull owned by a woman living two streets away.  The first attack, on Bear, occurred on September 23rd.  The owner of the pit bull apologized and promised to pay the vet bills.  Bet she didn't.  Five days later the same pit bull came back and attacked Missy, the home owner's other dog.  As soon as Missy returned home from the vet she was attacked again.  Missy was still in a cone and was defenseless. Brenda Nichols, the owner of Bear and Missy is afraid to leave her home.

News station WOIO is "talking to the city" about why it took three attacks by the same pit bull to get the dog picked up.  The reporter, Victor Williams does fall back on the talking point that "the owner is responsible" even though the owner is obviously NOT responsible.  Reporter Williams appears to be rightly distressed by the attacks he is reporting on but in this case, he does not reveal his advocacy for the breed.  Reporter and pit bull owner Williams contacted a pediatrician who is outspoken about the dangers of pit bulls to the peaceful public and especially to children.  Williams requested a dialog with Dr. Marusinec and got it.  Dr. Marusinec states in  Williams report "“The medical studies in the last 10 years really overwhelmingly conclude that pit bulls are especially dangerous to children,” said Pediatrician, Laura Marusinec." Marusinec by way of facetime says they’re just too much of a risk.

“Not only do they cause the most frequent injuries but they also cause the most severe injuries,” added Marusinec."

Has this information changed the way Williams thinks on the pit bull issue?  Suspect not. There is a very long list of medical studies supporting Dr. Marusinec's statements. Has this information reached the pit bull advocates harassing the Parma City Council?  Likely yes, but conveniently ignored.

                                                          

Milestone post, pit bulls on sale in Cleveland, pit bull kills pleasant little dog inciting rabid pit bull advocates to demand release of the pit bull, concealed carry permit holder shoots attacking pit bull, pit bulls attack each other prompting Dayton police to just shoot them

This post marks a milestone here at Scorched Earth.  The blog surged right on by 200,000 page views.  Thanks for reading this.  The blog was only supposed to record how a bad bill in the Ohio Legislature (HB 14) became a bad law.  We have gone in many directions and you have come along for the ride.  Thanks!  The ride is not over, lots more to come.

                                                                * * *

You can get at a drastic reduction in the adoption price from the City of Cleveland Shelter for a limited time only. Fifty of the longest held dogs will be available for $21, marked down from $61.  Here is the problem, they are all pit bulls.  I looked at this shelter a few days ago.  They had 68 dogs available, 63 of them are pit bulls.  Thanks, but I think I will stay home.


                                                     * * *

6/13/2018
Kettering Ohio
Montgomery County

A Kettering pit bull has been euthanized for killing a Dachshund last month.  The person fostering the pit bull, I refuse to call her the dog's "foster mom" stated that Stormy the pit bull handled an interaction with the Dachshund "naturally" by grabbing the little dog by the neck and killing it.

Per the Dayton Daily news " Stormy was walking on a leash, held by a 16-year-old, on May 14 when Cooper’s owner let the smaller dog loose outside in the common area behind townhomes on Windsor Park Drive in Washington Twp. Cooper moved close to Stormy, when the larger dog lunged and grabbed the smaller dog by the throat and shook until he went limp, according to a Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office report."

 Stormy was not licensed because the foster, Robin Pack, was in the process of "adopting" (read purchasing a used pit bull).  Title to this particular pit bull was held by the Cincinnati SPCA. There is little demand for pit bulls in Cincinnati apparently, the shelter is overwhelmed with them.  Failure to register and dog at large charges against Pack were dropped.  Stormy was euthanized at the Montgomery Animal Resource Center.  Pack, in the process of purchasing Stormy at the time of the fatal attack, was irate that she had not been given the right to agree to the euthanization nor had the Cincinnati SPCA.

The Animal Justice League of America held a protest at the Montgomery County ARC that had no impact on the final decision to euthanize Stormy.  Dayton is knee deep in violent pit bulls and has no need to import them from downstate.  Mark Kumpf, Montgomery County Dog Warden got this one right.


RIP Cooper

But wait, there is more information.  The Animal Justice League of America lobbied hard on behalf of Stormy without any actual knowledge of the actual circumstances.

Here is are the texts of two emails sent to Dog Warden Mark Kumpf.
"Hi Mark,  This is Shane Rudman, founder of the Animal Justice League of America.  I truly appreciate the difficulty of the job you do.  I'd like to help you with a good public relations for you. We are willing to take Stormy out of state to Kansas City.  I'll make sure to get you and your local media and national media to appreciate your situation.  I'm meeting with KCMO's mayor. (redacted material) ...will make time for this.  If you or your top assistant cam text me at your earliest convenience today, I think you'll be happy we connect.  Our people are in contact with (redacted)... guessing we'll make a very positive announcement in a few months (redacted name) makes his decision on next contact.  Again, Thx for all you do.  In far too many cases it's a thankless job."

Here is another email from the same individual.  "Hi Mark, trying to give you some help with the dog Stormy. I know we are both extremely busy.  When you get a chance just shoot me a quick text so e can connect.  I know time is running out.  I've left multiple messages on your vm, the person that reports direct to you, and one other person.  I was afraid maybe the phn system wasn't getting msgs straight so I had a volunteer drive over to deliver a message in person.  Hopefully, we can connect before it's too late.  Again, thx for your hard work."   These texts were posted on the Animal Justice League of America's Facebook page in hopes of stirring the pot in Dayton.  Here is what Rudman had to say.  "Animal Justice League of America

Yesterday at 12:44am · 

This is Shane Rudman. My team of Admin normally post here but several investigative reporters asked for these texts message to be posted tonight. These are two of the text messages I sent to Mark Kumpf of the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center. None were returned. He and his staff refused to return any of the other half dozen voice mails that I personally left. Part of the first text is redacted due to NDA’s.

.

Feel free to review this material on The Animal Justice League of America's Facebook page.  You will also have the opportunity to watch an endless video of Rudman's self-important statements, offers to "help" law enforcement, and threats if these "offers" are not accepted.  Life is short, I could not bring myself to watch the whole thing.  Background information- Rudman lives in Kansas City and drove to Ohio to interfere in local law enforcement matters.  

In any case, Rudman was apparently not aware that during the attack Stormy also bit the owner of the Dachshund and bit a neighbor as well. Here is a description of the attack from WDTN News. ""People started screaming," Lawson said. "And crying and punching stormy to get her to let go. I was hitting her too. I didn't know what else to do."

 Lawson is the daughter of Robin Pack, she was walking Stormy at the time all hell broke loose.

Here is a statement from the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center "The dog was property of the Cincinnati SPCA," a spokesperson for the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center said in a statement Wednesday. "And it was signed over for euthanasia to the ARC.  Stormy was euthanized on June 5. This is a public safety issue.  One of our mandates is public safety. Montgomery County will not put the community at risk by releasing any animal that has shown aggressive behavior."

The Cincinnati SPCA confirmed Wednesday it was their decision to have the dog euthanized, not the ARC's decision.

"After Stormy attacked & killed another dog, in addition to biting a person," a spokesperson for the Cincinnati SPCA said in a statement released Wednesday. "Stormy was deemed vicious and dangerous. SPCA signed an affidavit to release Stormy to Montgomery County where the incident took place, so that the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center could take necessary actions in the case."

You can't make this stuff up.  

                                                            * * *

6/26/2018
College Hill Ohio
Hamilton County

A concealed carry permit holder shot and killed a pit bull after the pit bull charged the man, his wife, and their dogs as they were out for a peaceful walk.  The permit holder did not shoot the pit bull until after he was bitten TWICE in the leg.  The pit bull owner came out of his house in response to the attack but was unable to control his own pit bull.  At this point, the permit holder shot the pit bull in the head.  Remarkable self-control.  The permit holder required treatment at a local hospital.  The SPCA cited the pit bull owner.  College Hill is located just 10 miles from Cincinnati, a pit bull hell.  The Cincinnati SPCA is infested with pit bulls.

Why is the pit bull owner always the last person to arrive at the scene of a pit bull attack?

 


                                                                    * * *



6/27/2018
DAYTON Ohio
Montgomery County

Yet another pit bull attack in Mark Kumpf's county.  Dayton police shot three dogs attacking another dog in a Dayton home.  The story has changed several times over the course of the day but it appears that one dog is dead, one in critical condition and one still at the vet with no condition report.  Neighbors report hearing Alexis Keeton screaming that she was being attacked but the dog owner denies this, stating that she was just trying to break up the dogfight.  She has five dogs, the three accounted for here are two American Bullies (pit bulls) and one pit bull  Dayton is a pit bull hell.  This story ends with the standard reassurances from the pit bull owner.   " Keeton said although her dogs have fought each other, once before - it's never been this extreme.

"My boyfriend's had all of them his whole life - they're four years old. They've never shown aggression to humans, other dogs. They're protective over the house, well behaved, obedient dogs."

Keeton says she's thankful neither she or the police were injured. She said the situation could have been a lot worse. 

I bet Keeton's neighbors just love her.

                                                             * * *

February 22nd pit bull roundup. Pit bulls shot by police, pit bulls attack their owners, pit bulls fail as guard dogs, pit bulls continue to attack in communities that dropped breed bans, pit bulls abused by their owners, and more.

Sometimes life gets in the way of blogging but we are back and hope to post more regularly in the future. 

12/20/2017

Crystal Lakes Ohio
Clark County

A deputy shot a dog apparently belonging to a bystander observing a routine traffic stop.

Per New Carlyle News " What we have been able to piece together is that a deputy initiated a traffic stop near the Kennedy Rd address.  It is currently unclear how, but bystander with a dog became involved, and the deputy told a man to control the dog or it would be shot.

Conflicting reports of the dog's behavior are emerging. The owners of the dog are maintaining that the dog did nothing wrong. However; people familiar with the area tell us that the dog charges at everyone and everything. Neither can be confirmed or denied at this time.

The dog was alive and was being taken to a veterinarian for treatment.

A woman on the scene  was visibly upset with the deputies. "Is that what you guys do, go around shooting peoples' dogs," she screamed in a profanity-laced tirade. “What am I going to tell my 6-year-old now?”

You can't make this stuff up. Don't want your dog shot?  Don't interfere with law enforcement officers who are simply doing their job.  Don't allow your pit bull to charge men with guns.

This is the pit bull involved in this incident.  His name is Duke and he is not yet one year old. It was reported that he was taken to a veterinarian's clinic for overnight observation.  If he lives through the night surgery is expected.  

This is a strange story, but wait... video has been made public and this mess has been explained. There was apparently no bystander.  A legitimate traffic stop was in progress, two men were in the truck.  The truck, possibly stolen, was driven into a yard, the non compliant passenger in the vehicle, Michael Seals,  ran to the house carrying a mysterious backpack. Someone (Seals?) held the door open for the pit bull.  The officer yelled for the homeowner to control his pit bull but there was no compliance so the rapidly approaching and obviously menacing pit bull was shot.

Duke did not survive. The driver of the stolen vehicle was charged for a tail light violation.  Seals was charged for failure to comply, resisting arrest, and obstructing official business. Seals also had an active warrant through Fairborn.  It all makes sense now. 

                                                               * * *

10/25/2017
Highland Heights Ohio
Cuyahoga County

Highland Heights police shot and killed a pit bull mix at the direction of the dog's owner.  The pit mix attacked the owner and his 18 year old son.  The pair were trapped in a basement room.  The owner told police " the dog was chewing at the door trying to get to them and his son was losing a lot of blood. The dog attacked officers as they entered the home so they shot and killed it.

                                                                     * * *

10/20/2017

Middletown Ohio

Butler County  

Pit bull fails as a guard dog.  A female  Middletown resident hired a 34 year-old man to install a new door on her home paying $150 in advance.  He later returned, with his 29 year-old girlfriend, to rob the woman.  The home owner stated "She also said she was surprised that her pit bull that usually barks when strangers are in the house didn’t move when the suspects were in the residence." 

                                                    * * *

9/12/2017

Avon Lake Ohio

Lorain County Ohio

Pit bulls attack in Avon Lake.  Avon Lake, a community that had a breed ban prior to a 3 1/2 year effort by city councilman Dave Kos to remove the ban, continues to have pit bull problems. Please note that councilman Kos hired a pit bull advocate/animal rights lawyer to write breed neutral law the has proven to be ineffective.

In the most recent incident, the loose pit bull attacked four different individuals in just a few minutes. Click on this link and you can see actual video of the dogs in action.  One of the victims, a young boy jumped in a neighbor's pool to escape.  These two pit bulls have a history of running at large.  The owner lives in a rental property with a "no dogs" stipulation on the lease.

Avon Lake pre-bite+ ordinance, click here.

Avon Lake post-bite ordinance, click here.     Avon Lake taxpayers paid a pit bull advocate lawyer to write this law.  They were cheated.

                                                                    * * *

1/16/2018

Toledo Ohio

Lucas County

You rarely see the Toledo Blade report on a pit bull attack so this is a special event.  Toledo police officer Mel Russell was attacked by a pit bull while helping to evacuate a home that was the scene of a stove fire.  A pit bull owned by the occupants of the home attacked the officer as he helped the residents exit the home.  Rude behavior. Officer Russell threw the pit bull off but the pit bull resumed the attack, biting the officer on his left forearm.  Again the officer attempted to throw the pit bull off but was unable to do so.  He shot the pit bull three times, killing it.  Officer Mel Russell was treated and released from a local hospital.

Never attack a police officer, they carry guns.  The countdown begins for the owner of the pit bull to demand justice for his dog.  

1/17/2018 Update  We knew this was coming.

The pit bull owner is complaining that the officer shot his dog rather than tasing it.  "Ya'll could have done more to not make it a situation you didn't have to kill my dog," Holmes tells WTOL. "Ya'll could have Tased him. You Tase humans and humans are stronger than animals."

Toledo police defend their officer.  Per Cleveland.com "Police Sgt. Kevan Toney defended Russell's actions. "When a dog is attached to your arm biting you, you have to quickly make a decision and it could potentially cause further injury," Toney tells WTOL. "So, I think the officer in this case was doing just what he had to do."

The pit bull owner is also claiming that in addition to serving as a guard dog, his pit bull was also a "certified therapy dog."  It should be noted at this point, there is no certification for therapy dogs.  You can't make this stuff up.

There is no record of exactly where the family obtained the pit bull.  Was it placed by the Lucas County Pit Crew?  The Pit Crew proudly announced their 1000th pit bull placement this month.  How many of these placements went as wrong as that of Bosco the Biter?  Did the Pit Crew count that placement as two since they placed Bosco with a Fulton County family where he bit the new owner on the third day in the household and after a whole lot of legal trouble for the Pit Crew and the president of that organization, Jean Keating, went on to a life changing mauling for  out of state "pit bull expert" Jacqueline Johnson?  

Dogs placed by rescues should be micro chipped by law so that responsibility can be determined.   

                                                                               * * *
2/13/2018
Hamilton Ohio
Butler County

A 21-year-old Hamilton man was charged with animal cruelty after a video surfaced of him beating his pit bull with a thick rope leash.  Sometimes a pit bull's worst nightmare is his owner.  Wouldn't mandatory neuter and spay be better than this?  Dogs not conceived so not suffer. Zeus the pit bull was removed from the home by county dog wardens.  This is Butler County and the dog warden is Kurt Merbs.

                                                                   * * *
   
2/20/2018
Hamilton Ohio
Butler County

Speaking of Butler County and dog warden Merbs, there is more cruelty to report.  A 39-year-old Middletown homeowner, Tina Jackson, was charged with three counts of animal cruelty after three dead dogs, and the head of a forth dog were found in her back yard.  Merbs stated   "We made entrance into the backyard. There are dog kennels everywhere, dog houses everywhere. Right when we walked in and turned, there is a black plastic tote, sitting up on a wooden bench. Inside that tote was a decapitated head of a dog and an English bulldog," Butler County dog warden Kurt Merbs said.  The bulldog was dead, Merbs said. He said they also found a dead pit bull curled up inside a dog house. "And across the yard, inside one of the kennels, inside another dog house was a black-and-white little pit bull curled up, deceased as well," 

There was no explanation for the decapitated dog head.  Merbs stated "There's no body. There's no signs of a body. There's bones. There's no hair, fur, anything, so that would rule out that a dog ate this other body," Merbs said. "There was no animal marks, period. There was no biting, pulling, tearing. It was a clean slice of the head."

The dogs belonged to Jackson's husband ex-husband but she was reportedly caring for them.  A fifth dog was found inside the home and was in good condition.

Wouldn't mandatory neuter and spay be better than this?  Merbs spends a whole lot of his time on pit bull calls.  He should be demanding mandatory neuter and spay for the protection of dogs in his county.   He should also be demanding a change in leadership of the Ohio County Dog Wardens Association.  The association website, as of 12/11/2017 lists Mark Kumpf as president of the the OCDWA with a president-elect listed as Adam Chellis of Wayne County.  Why is Kumpf still running the show?  The man, as reported in a decision by the Court of Appeals of Ohio Second Appellate District, does not enforce the law but rather has chosen a failed policy of "dog owner education" in Montgomery County. Since taking over as Montgomery County dog warden in 2006 there have been FOUR fatal attacks in Kumpf's jurisdiction and countless attacks upon humans and pets.  Three of these fatal attacks have come from dogs already in Kumpf's system. Type Dayton into the search box at the top left of the page.  You will be here all day.   Ohio residents deserve better. 

                                                                   * * *
2/20/2018
Dayton Ohio
Montgomery County

Speaking of Montgomery County, this from Dayton.  Two pit bulls entered the home of a Dayton woman and killed her cat - INSIDE HER HOME.  The dogs were still on the property an hour later when animal control officers arrived to pick them up.  Animal control was unable to identify owners of the dogs.  As I recall,  ownership of the pit bull that killed  Dayton resident Maurice Brown  in April on 2017 has not been determined despite full knowledge of exactly where the dog was harbored.  That address has a long history of animal control calls.  Montgomery County residents deserve better.

Enough for today, this is depressing.  What is even more depressing is that there is a LOT more.  
             

Pit bull roundup 7/30/2017 Mayhem continues in the Buckeye State, children in critical condition, police are menaced by pit bulls, church goers menaced by pit bulls, pit bulls shot by police and the general public as well.

Ohio now proudly ranks second in dog bite claims in the United States.  Per Cleveland.com "Although Ohio has the seventh-largest population, it's No. 2 in insurance claims for dog bites.

The Buckeye state last year had 1,009 insurance claims for dog bites, behind only California, according to the Insurance Information Institute. Ohio is ahead of New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Michigan, Texas and Indiana."  Please keep in mind that pit bull owners are no longer required to carry insurance so they just skip that step in responsible ownership. Pit bull victims don't get settlements, they just pay the bills for their own attacks. 

This post will introduce a new, shorter post format to the Scorched Earth blog. This break with Scorched Earth tradition will serve two purposes.  

First, the short post format will reduce reports to the stark basics of life in our state since Representative  Barbara Sears allowed lawyers employed by Best Friends Animal Society of Kanab Utah to write law for the State of Ohio.  

Second, the short post format will also allow us to clean up the backlog as quickly as possible. It has proven to be impossible to keep up with pit bull mayhem in the state.  

                                                            * * *

5/30/2017

Reynoldsburg Ohio

Franklin County and Licking County

A Reynoldsburg police officer was called to a local school for an animal complaint.  The officer was menaced by a loose pit bull (Reynoldsburg bans pit bulls).  The dog owner was cited for allowing her dogs to run at large AT A SCHOOL.  The dog owner refused to accept her citation.   Think she has insurance?  

                                                            * * * 

5/8/2017

Dayton Ohio

Montgomery County

A 7-year-old boy was attacked by a pit bull mix and required hospital treatment.  Per WHIO News "  The victim’s father told police the dog was “an ongoing issue with the residents in the neighborhood.” 

  This is not surprising, the county dog warden is Mark Kumpf.  Police contacted the dog owner, a 22-year-old man who claims to be willing to cover the victim's medical expenses. Don't hold your breath. The claim was made that the dog would be surrendered to the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center.  Again, don't hold your breath.   Think the 22 year old pit bull owner has insurance?  Nope, I don't think so either. 

                                                                  * * *                                        

5/28/2017

DAYTON Ohio

Montgomery County

An aggressive dog of unreported breed was shot by Dayton Police as it menaced church goers and charged police.  A second menacing dog was taken to Mark Kumpf's Montgomery County Animal Resource Center.  Video with this story clearly shows a pit bull chained on the property where the dogs were housed.  These dogs were known to be aggressive but obviously, Mark Kumpf has yet again, failed to protect the residents of his county.   

  

                                                     * * *

5/30/2017

DAYTON Ohio

Montgomery County

Dayton police were called to a home where neighbors reported an aggressive dog on the roof.  The dog and a second dog at the address were reportedly unlicensed.  Montgomery County Animal Resource Center staff left a sternly worded post-it note for the owners. 

                                              * * *

5/2017

Kenton Ohio

Hardin County

A pit bull attacked a leashed dog being walked in a Kenton neighborhood.  The pit bull owner was cited for a violation of the city's dangerous and vicious dog ordinance.

 

                                                            * * *

5/29/2017

DAYTON Ohio

Montgomery County Ohio

News that you will never hear reported, a Dayton woman was bitten by a Chihuahua. Per the Dayton Daily News "The 34-year-old female victim said she was walking along when a tan and brown small Chihuahua ran toward her. The dog tried to bite her left ankle, but she shook the animal off and ran home.  The woman was not injured.

The dog owner, a 35-year-old woman living on Suman Avenue, was given a warning.

A sternly worded post-it note would be the traditional warning from the Montgomery County Animal Resource Center.  What kind of warning is given by Dayton Police?

                                                                 * * *

4/25/2017

Cleveland Ohio

Cuyahoga County

A Cleveland man was attacked by his own pit bull and taken to a Trauma Center for treatment.  His condition was listed as serious.  The victim's wife stabbed the pit bull to end the attack.  The pit bull was confiscated.  Here is how News 5 describes the attack "When police arrived on the scene, the wife of the man who was being attacked, Ethel Taylor, had blood splattered across her shirt.

She told police that the dog "attacked my husband and you need to kill that dog."

Taylor said she went to take a bath when she heard dogs barking in front of her house. She followed the noise to discover that her husband, Cedric Gardner, was being attacked by their pit bull.

Gardner told his wife to grab the gun but she couldn't find it.

Taylor went to the kitchen and found the biggest knife she could find and started to stab the dog repeatedly, according to a news release. Taylor pulled out her taser after stabbing the dog didn't work.

The dog let go of Gardner and retreated to the back of a pickup truck that was parked on the street."

Think this happens to Beagle owners?   

                                                                   * * *

5/8/2017

Defiance Ohio

Defiance County

A 40 year old man shot his girlfriend's pit bull mix in self defense.  He attempted to put the thing outside after it tore up his house so it began to attack him.  Beagles do this all the time. 

                                                                         * * *

5/17/2017

Mt Vernon Ohio

Knox County

A pit bull was shot while attacking a neighbor's dog, on the neighbor's property.  The shots came from a second floor window.  The property owner heard the attack in progress and could see two little girls trying to pull the pit bull off the property owner's dog.  The property owner felt that the girls and his own dog were in trouble so he took immediate action.  The property owner reported the shooting to local police, there were no charges.

As is the norm, the pit bull owner did not see the attack but claimed that the property owner was irresponsible.  She also claimed that her dog was not vicious (shot during an attack but not vicious).  You can't make this stuff up.  Video is available on the link.

   Pacman died after he was was shot three times from an upstairs window.  He would still be sleeping on the couch if he had been responsibly confined.  Don't want your dog shot?  Keep him at home.

                                                                   * * *

5/17/2017

DAYTON Ohio

Montgomery County

A pit bull owner let his American Staffordshire Terrier out to prance around the neighborhood on Mother's Day.  Boi Boi the Amstaff was shot by a neighbor.  Boi Boi's owner did not see the shot because he was not present but theorizes that the neighbor noted Boi Boi at large and went into his home to get a gun.  The neighbor stated he did not mean to hit the dog, just scare it away.  No charges were filed.  Video is available on the link.

Don't want your dog shot?  Keep him at home and under your supervision and control.

                                                           * * *

5/10/2017

Canton Ohio

Stark County

A 76 year old woman was attacked by a neighbor's  bully breed dog when she took her own dog outside.  The  victim suffered deep bites and required hospital treatment.  The bully breed dog was surrendered to local authorities for euthanization. Stark County dog warden Jon Barber offers the classic excuses for the attack.  "I’m sure the dog could’ve been a very nice dog, but I’m not sure the environment that the dog came from, it ever had an opportunity. These bully-type dogs get a bad stereotype, but realistically, it’s the circumstances of how they were raised and how they’re brought up that led to this. It’s upbringing and social environment (that matter). This dog (is believed to have been) isolated, not socialized. So when it got loose, it reacted this way.”

Why do dog wardens repeat this crap?  They are paid to protect the safety of the public.  Who will pay the victim's medical bills?

Think there is insurance?

                                                                    * * *

6/22/2017

Columbus Ohio

Franklin County

A Columbus police officer, serving a warrant on a known drug house in that city, was attacked by a pit bull.  The pit bull was shot in self defense.  Per 10tv "The woman they were looking for initially came to the door, but then retreated inside. The officer followed her inside, at which point he says a pit bull was “put on” him.

The officer opened fire, killing the dog.

The officer was treated at the scene for his injuries.

The woman was taken into custody, as well as a second person police located while trying to clear the home."

Funny how Beagles do not figure into stories like this.

                                                                         * * *

7/24/2017

Bellefontaine Ohio  

A child looking for permission to search for his lost drone was attacked by two pit bulls harbored at a Belfontaine residence.  The boy was transported to a hospital for treatment of wounds to his face, arms, chest, groin, and back.  The pit bull owner was cited for two counts each of dog at large and failure to vaccinate.  Per the Bellefontaine Examiner "The dogs were taken from the residence by the Logan County Dog Warden, who later reported one of the dogs became extremely aggressive as he removed it from his pickup truck to a kennel. It broke its metal collar and ran off."

 This is not a dog that should be tolerated at large in the community.

                                                               * * *

7/30/2017

DAYTON Ohio

Montgomery County

More news from Dog Warden Mark Kumpf's neighborhood.  Dayton police shot a pit bull after it attacked THREE Dayton residents. 

A Dayton police officer heard a woman screaming for help. Th woman, covered in blood, told two officers that there were others in a home being attacked by the dog. The officers could see the menacing pit, covered in blood, as it approached them aggressively.    The pit bull was shot in the nose. Medics found a second victim in the yard of the house.

Police made the decision to terminate the threat and euthanize the dog.  Later interviews with the victims revealed an attack earlier in the day by the same pit bull upon a third victim. Per WHIO " An interview with the dog bite victims revealed the dog had bitten a man earlier in the day in an unrelated domestic dispute. After the incident, the dog tried jumping on the owner and accidentally ripped a toenail off, which the owner said caused the dog to be upset “ever since.”

The dog shortly began attacking the people in the house."              

Mark Kumpf's staff arrived to remove the corpse. 

                                                           * * *

7/4/2017

Cleveland Ohio

Cuyahoga County

A six-year-old girl was admitted to Cleveland Metro in critical condition after she was attacked by the family pit bull.  Two adult females were also attacked.  The pit bull was shot by an off-duty Cuyahoga County sheriff's officer.  Handy to have someone close by to shoot the pit bull.  But wait,  it becomes even handier, the off duty officer was a resident of the household and he was the owner of the dog.  Both the owner, Michael Shaw Jr. and his pit bull have a record of charges in another northern Ohio community.  Per Cleveland 19 News "Records from Euclid Municipal Court show Michael Shaw Jr. was cited in February 2016 for five dog-related offenses. Shaw received citations for dog running at large, excessive animal noise, failing to register his animal, failing to provide the dog with adequate food and water, and nuisance activities involving an animal. The nuisance activities charge was amended to a disorderly conduct charge in July 2017, which Shaw pleaded guilty to. All other charges against Shaw were dropped.

According to the incident report obtained from Euclid Police, Shaw's white and brown pit bull was repeatedly getting out of his backyard. On February 21, 2016, the dog was running wild in the neighborhood and police responded to the home. Prior to police arriving, a neighbor was able to get the dog back into the yard, and used trash cans to block yard's entrance. The dog escaped again and the neighbor called police back to report the dog out yet again.

Shaw went to court for the citations and the dog was "moved out of the city" according to the Euclid Municipal Court docket.

Neighbors at the Cleveland address had previously called the dog warden complaining that the dog was "vicious."

Anastasia Highsmith, six-year-old victim. 

After the attack on Anastasia, neighbors want aggressive dogs out of their neighborhood. Per the 19 new story " Two neighbors spoke about the aggressive dog problem on their street, saying there are at least half a dozen pit bulls on the block and they all seem aggressive. Lee Covert has lived on W. 22nd Street his entire life and can’t understand the need for aggressive dogs in the neighborhood. According to Covert, the same dog that attacked on July 4 had recently gotten loose and police were called because a neighbor couldn’t get into her car." 

What are elected officials thinking when they allow breed advocates to block regulation of dangerous dogs and create unsafe neighborhoods? Was allowing a proven irresponsible pit bull owner to simply move his dangerous pit bull to another community an acceptable solution?  Not from a public safety point of view.  Cleveland's dangerous dog law is clearly written but poorly enforced.  Required insurance appears to be completely ignored.  
                                                            * * *
We will return to this mess shortly.