Supervisors Shelve Pit Bull Ban

The Board of Supervisors today shelved a bid to outlaw ownership of pit bulls in unincorporated neighborhoods throughout the county, ordering instead a study on toughening laws against vicious canines.

In recent incidents, both nationally and in Southern California, pit bulls have maimed and killed adults, children and small animals, prompting local governments to get tough on the owners of dangerous pets. But the five-member board, feeling that an outright ban was too severe and a possible violation of the constitutional rights of pit bull owners, voted to “receive and file” a proposal to outlaw pit bulls by Supervisor Kenneth Hahn, an action which shelves the motion indefinitely.