A New York appellate recently ruled that the owner of a dog who ran into a Central Park cyclist is not responsible for his injuries since it could not be proven that the dog had "vicious propensities," a strict standard set forth in case law.
Wolfgang Doerr, 46, was biking in the loop when Julie Smith began calling for her shepherd mix, Lena, who was being held by her boyfriend. Doerr called out for her to watch her dog, as he sensed it was about to run across his path, but it was too late. Doerr sustained a broken jaw and lost several teeth, while the dog suffered only a few bruises.
In her dissent, Judge Angela Mazzarelli pointed out that the animal was in the control of the owner and her boyfriend at all times, and that the incident would not have occurred had the owner not called the dog and her boyfriend not let it go. Mazzarelli also took issue with the legal precedent, citing that since it has been set "it has been virtually impossible for people injured by animals to recover if they could not establish the defendants' knowledge of the animals' vicious propensities."
Doerr's lawyer will be appealing the decision.
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