Pit Bulls Outlawed

by Dwight Turner

The City of Ardmore, TN Board of Mayor and Aldermen, meeting in regular session on Thursday, July 6, unanimously passed a new city ordinance prohibiting the ownership of Pit Bull dogs within the city limits. In a separate but related matter, the board also passed an ordinance related to vicious dogs of all breeds.

The concern over Pit Bulls in Ardmore initially surfaced at the June meeting of the board when Alderman Raymond Crabtree voiced his feelings about several locations within the city where the dogs were being kept. Crabtree and the entire board, including Mayor Bobby Hastings, agreed that the issue needed to be addressed in an expeditious manner and the new ordinance was placed on the agenda for the July meeting.

“It is well within our rights to do something about this issue,” said Hastings in beginning last Thursday’s discussion of the issue. “Sooner or later something is going to happen and we need to have something in place to deal with it.”

Alderman Garon Hargrove reported that the owner of the Dog Days Flea Market had informed him that several people had been bitten by Pit Bulls on his premises and further stated that people frequently visit the site with Pit Bulls on leashes.

Hastings provided the board with letters he had received from City Attorney Joe Henry and from the Municipal Technical Advisory Service (MTAS) regarding the issue. In his letter, Henry stated that he did not think that the city could implement an across the board ban of Pit Bulls or any other breed, but went on to suggest that the city contact MTAS for further direction.

The letter from MTAS stated that several Tennessee cities had passed ordinances against Pit Bulls and a copy of an ordinance passed in Jefferson City was provided. After discussing the matter, the board voted unanimously on three readings to institute the new ordinance (No. O-06-07-06), prohibiting the keeping of Pit Bulls in the City of Ardmore, TN.

The wording of the new ordinance defines Pit Bull as follows: the Bull Terrier breed of dog; and the Staffordshire Bull Terrier breed of dog; and the American Pit Bull Terrier breed of dog; and the American Staffordshire Terrier breed of dog; and dogs of mixed breed or of other breeds than above listed which breed or mixed breed is known as Pit Bulls, Pit Bull Dogs, or Pit Bull Terriers; and any dog which has the appearance and characteristics of being predominantly of the breeds of Bull Terrier, Staffordshire Bull Terrier, American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, and any other breed commonly known as Pit Bull Dogs or Pit Bull Terriers; or a combination of any of these breeds.

The ordinance goes on to stipulate specifically that it is unlawful to keep, harbor, own, or in any way possess a Pit Bull dog within the corporate limits of the City of Ardmore, TN. Further, any dog found to be the subject of a violation of this code shall be subject to immediate seizure and impoundment.

The new ordinance became law immediately upon passage and contains no provisions for “Grandfathering” in any existing dogs currently residing in the city.

According to Mayor Hastings, the Ardmore Police Department will visit owners where Pit Bulls are currently being kept, inform owners of the new ordinance, and give said owners a reasonable length of time to remove the dog from the city limits.

In a related ordinance, the board addressed the issue of vicious dogs. The new ordinance (AO-06-07-06), which also passed unanimously, spells out what constitutes a vicious dog and specifies the procedure for declaring a dog vicious. The ordinance also delineates how vicious dogs are to be kept, how the public is to be protected, and consequences of failure to comply with the law.

The ordinance does not apply to any dog used by the police department and other law enforcement agencies.