Dear Red phone,
“We have a barking dog next door. I have tried to contact the owner but they will not answer the door. When we contacted the Morgan Hill Police they asked if we were willing to sign a complaint. This seems to be the same as suing my neighbor. The police stated that the neighbor could sue me for false arrest if the charges can’t be proved or if the dog isn’t barking all night. Is this the only way I can get the police ot enforce the ordinance? Do I need a video of the dog barking and for how many hours at a time?”
Dear reader, the following is a response from Shane Palsgrove, special operations Captain for the Morgan Hill Police Department:
“When a person calls the Morgan Hill Police Dispatch Center to report a barking dog disturbance, a dispatcher asks the caller if he/she is willing to sign a complaint because this determines what actions the police officer is able to take when responding to the call. A disturbance is a misdemeanor crime. A police officer is not able to issue a citation for a misdemeanor not committed in his/her presence. Even in the case where the dogs are barking in the officer’s presence, the officer cannot issue a citation without a victim of the disturbance, and hence must have a caller who is willing to be a victim/or sign a complaint. Often times when a police officer arrives on scene of a disturbance call, the dog(s) have stopped barking. If the caller is willing to sign a complaint/citizen’s arrest, then the officer can issue a citation for the disturbance. If the caller is not willing to sign a complaint, the officer is limited in the enforcement action he/she can take. The officer may ask the violator for his/her cooperation but has no legal authority to ensure compliance is achieved. If the caller goes forward with signing a complaint, he/she would be responsible for providing the evidence to support their claim in addition to the officer’s observations upon arriving and hearing the dogs barking. The officer would explain to the caller the necessary steps to prepare for the court process at the time of signing the citation. Officers will also provide neighborhood conflict resolution information.”
Shane Palsgrove can be reached via email at [email protected].
