Richmond Board of Works spares dog deemed vicious, orders contract and police monitoring

The Richmond Board of Works voted to take no further action to euthanize a dog previously declared vicious and instead directed the Richmond Police Department to monitor compliance and asked the city attorney to draft a binding contract with stipulations for the owner.

Aaron Stevens, administrative resource officer for the Richmond Police Department, told the board the incident under review involved a dog named Mo that “viciously bit the mother of the owner, Mr. Andrew Maul, in an unprovoked manner [and] bit her in the face, leaving a tremendous amount of stress and damage to her face.” Stevens also said the dog was not registered or up to date on vaccinations at the time of the October incident; owner Andrew Maul corrected the date on the record to Oct. 10.

Animal Control Officer Desiree Durbin reported she inspected Maul’s residence and confirmed several required items—yellow collar, muzzles, a 4-foot leash, an indoor kennel, and proof of liability insurance—but said the owner had not provided the 5-by-10 locked outdoor pen or structure that the ordinance lists as required for outdoor confinement. Durbin also confirmed Maul produced veterinarian records showing vaccinations were updated in November, roughly a month after the bite.

Maul told the board he has completed training with a private trainer and provided the trainer’s evaluation to the board; he described exercises the trainer ran and said the evaluation indicated Mo did not display anxious, fearful or aggressive behaviors during testing. Maul also said the dog serves an important role for his mental health, telling the board, “I need him. I function much better having a dog in my life.”

Board members explored options that included immediate euthanasia, impoundment and a conditional approach requiring continuous muzzling when away from home, leash use, the yellow collar, fenced or otherwise secure outdoor containment, periodic or spontaneous police checkups, and a written contract of compliance. Several members emphasized that any additional incident would prompt swift enforcement, including impoundment and a follow-up hearing.

A board member moved to follow the recommendation articulated by the city assistant attorney: take no further action to order euthanasia at this time; refer future compliance monitoring to the Richmond Police Department; and refer preparation of contractual, enforceable stipulations to the law department. The motion carried by voice vote; the chair said the city attorney will prepare the contract containing the agreed stipulations.

The board instructed police and animal-control staff to perform checks to ensure compliance and warned Maul that failure to comply would trigger further proceedings. The hearing concluded and the board adjourned by general consent.