Dangerous-dog debate intensifies

The death of a 7-year-old boy killed by his family's pit bull in their north Minneapolis home has recharged an aggressive push to ban so-called dangerous dog breeds.

Neighborhood activists say they'll distribute fliers in that part of the city with a phone number residents can call anonymously if they know where dangerous dogs are and where dog fighting is occurring. And a state senator plans to introduce his dog-ban legislation during the upcoming special session.

The North Side is overrun with pit bulls, said Minneapolis City Council Member Don Samuels, who wants to challenge the state law that prevents cities from banning specific breeds. Minnesota is one of a dozen states with such a law.

Speculation continued to swirl Friday about why the male pit bull, named Face, lunged for Zachary King Jr.'s throat in his parent's basement in the 3500 block of Humboldt Avenue N. on Thursday.

Face had been on a 3-foot leash; the family also had a female pit bull and five puppies that were allowed to wander freely in the house. Zachary may have gone to the basement to play with the puppies, family members said.

Zachary's cousin, Craig Dyar, said the King family is closing ranks now that so many outsiders are weighing in. For the big extended family, Zachary's death is a horrific tragedy, he said.

But for Samuels and others, the family's tragedy is a community issue, too.

"This debate isn't about docile pets nuzzling their owners," Samuels said. "It's about dangerous dogs maiming and killing people. That's where we are at, once more."

Dog-attack deaths are extremely rare. Keith Streff, director of investigations for the Animal Humane Society of Golden Valley, said he hadn't heard of one in the state in 20 years.

The dog that killed Zachary had bitten two other people and any further incidents could have led to it being declared dangerous, animal control officials have said. That would have required the family to muzzle it in public and have proper fencing or kennels.

Anger and calls to action

Zachary's death infuriated Roberta Englund, executive director of the Folwell Neighborhood Association in north Minneapolis, who said it's time to hold dog owners accountable.

"We're not going to take this," she said. "Sometimes it feels like there are more pit bulls than guns around here, and we're sick of it."

She said her group is joining city animal control officials in urging residents to call 612-521-2100 anonymously to report dangerous dogs or dog fights. The group will distribute fliers to that effect in the neighborhood.

Even before the attack, debate on the issue was intense. State Rep. John Lesch, who in June proposed banning certain dog breeds, said Friday he's received a lot of support from the public and other legislators in the wake of Zachary's death.

"The reason I brought this forward was not because I anticipated a tragedy this summer," Lesch said.

Minneapolis Police Lt. Amelia Huffman said the case will be forwarded to the county attorney's office, which will consider whether Zachary's father was criminally culpable. Police, who removed the adult female pit bull and five puppies from King's home, don't know whether he intended to sell them. There is no indication he was involved in dog fighting, Huffman said. In fighting, pit bulls are commonly used.

Tom Deegan, manager of Animal Care & Control for Minneapolis, said the agency has no immediate plans to change the monitoring of the owners of potentially dangerous dogs. But no animal control employee would have supported keeping a dog tied in the basement.

Is it the breed or the training?

Chris Binsfield and his 5-year-old pit bull, Helmet, are well-known in Minneapolis' Uptown neighborhood. Pit bulls aren't vicious unless owners teach them to be, he said.

Binsfield has been working to craft a bill he hopes a legislator will sponsor next year. His proposal would prevent convicted felons from owning dangerous dogs and require people to fill out an application if they want to own certain breeds.

"I know some people are terrified of some dogs because they've had a bad experience with them," he said.

Samuels is one. Three times, he has had to fend off a pit bull or stop one from attacking his children, he said. The state will be forced to revisit a breed ban proposal because it will be part of the city's legislative agenda next year, he said.

"If you had a breed that was violent and biting residents who live around the lakes in Minneapolis as they do in north Minneapolis, that breed would be gone," Samuels said. "The pit bull has become a weapon of choice for intimidation and assault."

After five major biting incidents in Minneapolis in the spring, the city created a task force to reexamine the city's dangerous-animal ordinance. The group has met twice.

Dog bans have been tried before in Minneapolis. In 1988, the City Council imposed severe restrictions on pit bulls and owners. The ordinance was never enforced because dog owners sued and the ordinance was overturned.

Risk factors abounded

Karen Delise of Plainsville, W.Va., head of the National Canine Research Council, led a 40-year study of fatal dog attacks and has written two books. Multiple risk factors could have led to the killing, she said.

"This is textbook fatal attack," she said. "I've seen it over and over again. It's a formula for creating a dangerous dog."

The triggers, she said, include a household with multiple unaltered dogs that are reproducing, coupled with a dog that has a history of biting. Keeping a dog chained and in a basement ensures he remains unsocialized, with fewer opportunities to learn how to behave and interact appropriately with humans. Dogs are territorial, and if he can't flee a threatening situation, his only option is to fight, Delise said.

A family reels

By the time "Little Zach" was found unconscious in the basement by his older sister, who ran to awaken their father, the dog had stopped attacking the boy, Dyar said. The dog bit King as he rushed to Zach's side, forcing him to get a gun.

Dyar bristled at the public outcry that has surfaced over his cousin's death.

"I'm pretty sure that nobody would have a dog around if they knew it was dangerous enough to take a life," he said. "It makes my uncle seem bad."

Dyar said King feels guilty about what happened, but "as far as my uncle doing anything wrong, that's totally out of the question. He lost his child, and had to shoot a dog."

His uncle bred dogs, but not for high profits or to fight, Dyar said. "The case was not about breeding. It wasn't a dangerous environment for the kids. It was just something that just happened at the wrong time."

Staff writer Myron Medcalf contributed to this report. dchanen@startribune.com • 612-673-4465 jpowell@startribune.com • 612-673-7750 tcollins@startribune.com • 612-673-1790