SPCA sues city over bylaw
The Montreal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has filed a lawsuit against the city of Montreal contesting its newly adopted municipal bylaw that bans pit bulls.
The Montreal SPCA, a charitable organization that provides services to animals, filed a motion to overturn portions of the bylaw in Quebec Superior Court on Wednesday, a day after city council passed it.
Citing the urgency of the situation because the regulation is to go into effect on Oct. 3, the SPCA says it will be in court on Thursday to ask a judge to suspend application of the provisions that pertain to pit-bull-type dogs pending a hearing to overturn those provisions as illegal and unconstitutional.
“The argument is that there are serious legal issues with the bylaw, there is serious prejudice (and) harm that will occur and that it’s irreparable,” Alanna Devine, director of animal advocacy for the Montreal SPCA, said. She added that the organization made several attempts to explain its concerns to city officials before the bylaw was passed.
Requests to Mayor Denis Coderre’s office for comment were answered by a city spokesperson, who said the city’s legal advisers say the bylaw rests on the city’s “very long and clearly recognized power” to adopt regulations concerning animal control, notably to protect citizens.
The bylaw, which passed by a vote of 37-23 on council, is intended to phase out pit-bull-type dogs on city territory by prohibiting their acquisition and requiring current owners to apply for a special permit before Dec. 31, 2016 to keep such dogs.
The bylaw defines the breeds targeted for the ban and restrictions as American Staffordshire terriers, Staffordshire bull terriers and American pit bull terriers, as well as any mixed breed dogs that have a
part of those breeds and dogs with similar physical characteristics.
Applicants for the special permit to keep such dogs have to be at least 18 years old, provide proof they don’t have a criminal record and provide proof the dog has been sterilized, has a microchip implanted and has its rabies shots. Owners will also have to keep the dog muzzled and on a short leash.
However, the SPCA contends in its lawsuit that the provisions that target pit-bull-type dogs are contrary to several fundamental principles of law. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the organization and a resident in Plateau Mont-Royal who owns a pit-bull-type dog.
“The provisions are discriminatory in that they create additional and punitive obligations for owners or guardians of pit-bull-type dogs whereas this category also includes dogs that are not dangerous,” Devine said.
The lawsuit contends the language defining pit-bull-type dogs is vague and imprecise. That makes it impossible for the SPCA, which has contracts with about half of Montreal’s boroughs to provide animal shelter services, or for regular citizens to know which dogs fall into the category, Devine said.
The bylaw also fails to provide a means to allow the SPCA or a citizen to contest if the city designates a dog as a pit-bull-type dog, the SPCA contends.
The SPCA also argues the pit bull ban is contrary to a new section of the Civil Code that differentiates animals from other types of property as sentient beings with biological needs.