8.02.130 DECLARATION OF VICIOUS ANIMALS (County Code § 6.04.130).

(a) No Person shall keep, have, maintain, sell, trade or let for hire an animal which has been designated as Vicious under the provisions of this chapter.

(b) If an Animal Control Officer and/or Peace Officer has investigated and determined that an animal is Vicious, the Animal Control Officer or Peace Officer shall deliver written notice of such determination to the Owner of the animal. Service of notice shall be made in accordance with section 8.04.260 subdivision (a) of this Chapter. An Animal Control Officer and/or Peace Officer shall immediately impound the animal, or cause to be impounded, the animal according to the procedures set forth in Section 8.02.160 of this Chapter. The animal shall be deemed abandoned and shall be humanely euthanized unless the County designee or City designee has approved a different disposition or unless the Owner timely requests an administrative hearing.

(c) In determining whether an animal shall be designated Vicious, in addition to any other facts and circumstances of the incident(s), the applicable decision-maker may consider the following potentially mitigating factors.

(1) Whether at the time of the injury, attack or molestation, the Person or animal suffering the injury, attack, or molestation:

(A) provoked, tormented, teased, abused, or assaulted the animal, thereby causing or contributing to the alleged behavior,

(B) committed a willful trespass or other tort upon the private property of the Owner or Caretaker of the animal; and/or,

(C) threatened or committed an unjustified attack or assault against the Owner, Caretaker, or other Person in control of the charged animal.

The failure of the Owner or other Person in control of a victim animal to have the animal on a leash shall not, in itself, constitute a mitigating factor in any attack.

(2) Whether the Owner is willing and able to comply with the conditions of a Dangerous Animal permit, and whether the animal can be safely maintained on a Dangerous Animal permit considering the nature of the attack and cooperativeness and abilities of the Owner.

(d) The decision-maker may also consider, among any other relevant facts and circumstances, the following factors:

(1) whether any of the animals involved were previously deemed by any governmental jurisdiction as, "dangerous", "vicious", or any other similar designation, and/or the animal Owner's prior compliance or lack thereof with any applicable Dangerous Animal permit requirements or this Chapter;

(2) the attacking animal's history of attacks, bites or threatening behavior;

(3) whether the animal demonstrated such aggressive behavior that it is reasonable to conclude that the animal cannot be safely maintained with a Dangerous Animal permit; and

(4) whether the Owner is unable or unwilling to comply with the conditions of a Dangerous Animal permit.

(e) Should the Owner of the animal wish to contest the Vicious Animal designation, the Owner may request an administrative hearing to be conducted according to the procedures set forth in section 8.02.150 of this Chapter. The Owner shall submit a written request for a Vicious Animal hearing to the Animal Control Officer within seven (7) calendar days of the written notification by the Animal Control Officer and/or peace officer that the animal has been declared Vicious.

(f) Should the Owner not submit a request for an administrative hearing within the required timeframe, the administrative hearing process shall be deemed waived, the Vicious Animal designation will be considered final for purposes of exhaustion of administrative remedies, and the animal will be subject to disposition by the Animal Control Officer, peace officer, or City or County designee. The Owner shall lose all rights of Ownership and control of the animal, and the animal will be subject to humane euthanasia, unless another disposition is deemed appropriate by a City and/or County designee, without further notice to the Owner.

(g) The unwillingness of a victim or a particular witness to testify at a hearing shall not prevent designation of an animal as Vicious as long as sufficient evidence exists to support the designation.

(h) If after investigation, an Animal Control Officer and/or peace officer determines that the animal is not Vicious, the Officer will prepare a written decision upon request by any victim suffering physical injury or an Owner of a victim animal, either of whom may appeal that determination. Any victim suffering physical injury as a result of the attack, or Owner of a victim animal, may appeal the determination that an animal is not Vicious by submitting, within seven (7) calendar days of the service of the decision pursuant to section 8.02.260, a written request to the Animal Control Officer for an administrative hearing and paying the required fee as set forth in Section 8.02.350 of this Chapter. The administrative hearing shall be conducted according to the procedures set forth in section 8.04.150 of this Chapter.