Rockville Centre to suspend ban on certain dogs

Faced with strong opposition and questions about its legality, a Rockville Centre ordinance banning pit bulls and Rottweilers was suspended at a village meeting last night that overflowed with opponents of the measure.

Officials said nearly 350 opponents of the ban gathered at Village Hall to argue for its repeal. The ordinance was passed on June 8 by the board on a 4 to 1 vote.

Under the terms of the ban, Rockville Centre residents who already owned pit bulls and Rottweilers could keep the dogs under certain conditions. Owners would have had to spay or neuter the animals, muzzle and leash them in public, insure them against liability for at least $100,000 and pay for annual licenses. Unlicensed pit bulls and rottweilers would be impounded by the police, animal control officers or the building inspector, and shelters would be free to destroy them.

Licenses for new pit bulls or Rottweilers in Rockville Centre would be banned under the ordinance.

Last night, the board voted 5 to 0 to suspend the ordinance. Mayor Mary W. Bossart told audience members, that a public hearing would be held July 20 to discuss the issue.

Bossart said the law had been enacted through Rockville Centre's standard public review process. No one came out in opposition to the ordinance at the public hearing before the board voted for the ban, she said.

But opponents of the ordinance, who packed the hall and lined the sidewalk outside last night, said it violated a 1997 New York law forbidding municipalities from putting ownership rules on specific breeds of dogs.

Dan Osonowski, 35, of Seaford, who carried a photo of his 4-year-old son playing with the family Rottweiler, said the focus must not be on the dogs but the people who own them.

"These dogs are not violent," Osonowski said. "It's all how they are treated. Puppies come into this world innocent. We should be punishing violent owners."