Boo Gets a New Reprieve, but Dogfight Continues

The attack lasted only a matter of seconds, but the battle over the fate of a 140-pound bull mastiff responsible for injuring a 50-pound neighbor boy is moving into its sixth month and an unprecedented court fight.

Since the Dec. 26 attack that left 7-year-old Zach Anderson Jr. with injuries to his head and back, Boo has been sitting at the county pound awaiting his fate.

A judge last week, for the second time this year, delayed a date to destroy the dog, pending the outcome of a court hearing in July.

The emotionally charged case marks the first time a family has challenged in court a decision by Orange County Animal Control to destroy an animal that has been declared vicious, according to attorneys and county officials.

Stephen Williams says his dog is not vicious, and has spent more than $8,000 and put his family’s Yorba Linda home up for sale in an effort to save the 3 1/2-year-old animal.

In a writ filed last week in Orange County Superior Court, the family is seeking once again to overturn Animal Control’s decision to destroy the dog.

“Euthanasia should be the last resort,” said Williams, a 37-year-old accountant. “In the case of our dog, it is not warranted. He could be kept under simple conditions and restrictions that would prevent this from ever happening again.”

County animal officials say destroying Boo is the only reasonable alternative to protect the public, and Animal Control Director Judy Maitlen describes the injuries to Zach Anderson as the most serious she has seen in an unprovoked dog attack.

“Unfortunately this dog should be destroyed, and I hate to say it because I love dogs,” Deputy County Counsel James L. Turner said at a previous court hearing. “But it’s protection of the public. That’s the whole issue.”

Animal Control officials impounded the dog after learning of the Dec. 26 attack at the Williams’ house, which left Zach with scrapes and punctures over 40% of his back and head wounds requiring 60 stitches and 30 staples.

The families say Stephen Williams’ 12-year-old son, Justin, had invited Zach over to watch a skateboard video that evening. The two youths, along with Justin Williams’ 13-year-old cousin, were walking from the garage, through a patio breezeway leading to a back door, when Boo knocked down Zach.

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Stephen Williams and his father-in-law, who heard the commotion, estimated it took them 10 to 20 seconds to get to the breezeway, where they pulled the dog away from the boy.

Zach, who was hospitalized for about seven hours following the attack, will heal completely physically but suffers from nightmares and is now terrified of big dogs, said his father, Zach Sr.

The Williamses say Boo had never bitten or attacked anyone before, and contend that Zach’s injuries could have been caused when the dog pinned and clawed him, rather than from being bitten.

They point out that bull mastiff dogs, a mix of bulldogs and mastiffs, are bred to protect herds and pin intruders, until the owner arrives.

“Boo behaved as most normal, socialized dogs behave under these circumstances,” wrote Sue Myles, an animal behaviorist and trainer who has evaluated the animal. “Dogs are highly observant animals. They are keenly aware of entrances into their territory and become familiar with who goes in and out which entrance. They easily learn which entrances are used by strangers and those used by family.”

Stephen Williams said Zach was already afraid of Boo and had been warned by his parents against walking into Boo’s backyard territory.

The boy’s father says his son was only following the other boys and there were never any hard-and-fast rules requiring Zach to use only the front door.

The Williams’ attorney, animal rights specialist Michael Rotsten, also argues the county’s vicious-dog ordinance is vague and gives officials too much discretion in deciding which animals should be destroyed.

“We’re not letting them get away with this,” Rotsten said. “It’s ludicrous to want to kill this dog under this scenario.”

Animal Control officials, in two separate administrative hearings, have decided otherwise and say their decision to destroy the animal is soundly based on state law designed to protect public safety.

“We cannot focus on the fact that one family’s heart is broken,” Maitlen, the Animal Control director, said. “That is a terrible thing, but that can’t be our main consideration. Our main consideration has to be one little kid, in 20 seconds, was badly injured. It is the belief of both hearing officers that if Stephen Williams had not been there, the dog could have killed Zach.”

Maitlen said doctors, and even a coroner’s official, have said the boy’s injuries are consistent with dog bites, and Zach himself has testified he could feel the dog “munching” on his head.

After an administrative hearing in January, Animal Control officials declared the animal vicious, and set a Feb. 15 date to destroy it. The Williams challenged the decision to a Superior Court judge, and won a temporary reprieve and a court hearing, which resulted in an order for a second administrative hearing before Animal Control officials.

That three-day hearing this month resulted in another decision to destroy the animal, this time on June 11. Superior Court Judge Tully H. Seymour, in response to the second writ filed by the Williams family, delayed the destruction date pending the outcome of a July 16 hearing.

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Rotsten said his clients are willing to move, build a special, secured yard for their dog, and turn Boo over to a dog trainer until they learn how to better control the animal.

“If we would have had proper training, none of this would have occurred,” said Stephen Williams, adding he has put his house up for sale to spare Zach from ever having to live next door to Boo again.

Maitlen said safety restrictions are often adopted for dogs that have been declared vicious, but that officials believe euthanasia is the only reasonable alternative for Boo because of the seriousness of the injuries he caused, his size and his “unpredictable” nature.

“Since we don’t know what caused the attack, the question becomes: What are you going to train away?” she asked.

For their part, the victim’s family said they support Animal Control’s decision.

“We think he’s a danger,” said Zachary Anderson Sr., whose family is pursuing a personal injury lawsuit against the Williams family. “It’s not worth the chance to let this dog live next to someone else.”