VBF has recognized how widespread the problem of cyclist-dog accidents is, and has decided to do something about it, generating much discussion on various bike forums. Bringing this discussion into the open is good because the case is clear: when a cyclist is injured in a crash caused by a dog, it’s no different than if that cyclist were mauled in some other way. In fact the injuries from such crashes are usually worse.
We still have a long way to go. A recent story in the Bristol Herald Courier highlights the difference in treatment of two similar incidents involving bikes and dogs, due to differences in state and local laws. As Beth Lohman from the NRVBA points out, it also brings to light some of the things officers should be looking for when responding to a bike-dog incident. (Thanks Beth, some of our officers do need further training!)
Full text of the article follows:
By AMY HUNTER
Reporter / Bristol Herald Courier
Published: January 7, 2009
In the last six months of 2008, two area cyclists were seriously injured after similar collisions with dogs – but the outcomes of those incidents couldn’t have been more different.
Both victims were hospitalized with serious injuries after a loose-running dog knocked them off their bikes – a scenario local bicyclists say is the most common, and most dangerous threat to road cyclists. In one case, the dog owner has been charged with a felony and could face prison time; in the other, the owner was charged with misdemeanors and fined $50.
“It happens all the time, dogs running out in front of bikes,” said Rick Heppert, an officer in the Kingsport Bicycle Association. “And they can put you in the hospital.”
The felony charges were issued Monday, in connection with a Dec. 27 crash in Blountville, when a cyclist was chased by two dogs.
Heppert said such serious charges are rare, “very rare.”
The first of the two dog-bike collisions happened June 23, when a 59-year-old Bike Virginia cyclist fell while trying to kick a loose dog that was chasing him down Chip Ridge Road in Abingdon, Va.The man, a physician from Fairfax, Va., was rushed to Bristol Regional Medical Center with injuries that included two broken eye sockets, a broken nose and cranial bleeding, authorities said at the time. He remained in intensive care for several days, and then was flown to a hometown hospital for long-term recovery, said Kim Berry, event director with BikeWalk Virginia, the nonprofit group that hosts the Bike Virginia event as an annual fundraiser. “He had an extensive recovery period but is back at work now,” Berry said of the man, whom she declined to identify citing company policy. “He did recover from his injuries.”
The cyclist injured Dec. 27 was Barbara Pearce, who suffered bruising to her brain, a broken collar bone, broken shoulder blade and several broken ribs, Sullivan County Sheriff’s Capt. Keith Elton said.Pearce was injured after two dogs ran out onto Barger Hollow Road in Blountville and hit her bicycle. She was released from Johnston Memorial Hospital on Jan. 2, hospital spokesman Brad Lifford said.
On Monday, Sullivan County issued two felony warrants for Christine Salyer, who owns the dogs involved in the Dec. 27 incident in Blountville. If convicted, Salyer could be sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to pay thousands in fines, Elton said.
The owner of the mixed German shepherd culprit in the June incident, Cynthia Clark, of Abingdon, Va., was charged with three misdemeanors: dog at large; lack of rabies proof; and lack of tags. Charges that, at most, carry a $250 fine. Neither Salyer nor Clark could be reached for comment.
The difference in their cases: State and county laws.
Edna Griffin, Washington County General District Court Clerk, said court documents show a woman named Cynthia Clark, on Chip Ridge Road, was found not guilty for the dog-at-large charge when she appeared in court Aug. 4, but she was fined $50 total for the two other misdemeanors. “The only thing I can think is that when we charged her, we didn’t physically see the accident,” said Washington County Deputy Erik Hinchey, who worked the June case. “We didn’t physically see the dog running at large.”
Heppert said Tennessee changed its penalties about a year and a half ago regarding dogs at large. Now, not only are the fines higher, but if the dog causes property damage or personal injury, its owner could face up to $2,500 in fines and jail time.
“There’s actually not a leash law in Washington County, per se,” Hinchey said. “It’s not permitted for a dog to run at large; the statute states that a dog has to be under an owner’s immediate control, and once the dog leaves that, it’s considered running at large. “It’s a class four misdemeanor, and penalty is up to a $250,” Hinchey said. “But typically, the dog owner is liable for any damage caused by the dog.”
Because the identity of victim in the June 23 incident is unknown, the Bristol Herald Courier was unable to determine whether he pursued further legal action or received compensation. An after-hours call to the Washington County attorney who represented Clark was not returned.
However, Hinchey said Clark told police at her Aug. 4 court appearance that she had transferred ownership of the offending dog to someone else – he didn’t know who – and has since moved from the Chip Ridge Road home she was renting at the time.
ahunter@bristolnews.com | (276) 645-2531
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