Evanston Considers Putting More Teeth In Its Dangerous-Dog Law

EVANSTON, Ill. (CBS) –- Some Evanston residents believe the city's not doing enough to rein in dangerous dogs and want more serious action taken when dogs go wild.

Last year, Carin Wolkenberg's husband was walking their German shepherd, Buddy, in their Evanston neighborhood when the dog was savagely attacked by an off-the-leash pit bull.

"The dog would back off, as then as pit bulls do come back and bite some more, and then back off and then bite some more," Carin Wolkenberg tells CBS 2's Derrick Blakley.

Joey Wolkenberg wasn't injured but was covered in blood. Buddy suffered deep lacerations and had to be rushed to the animal hospital.

The Wolkenbergs filed a police report and expected action. But they say nothing happened – nothing.

"It's just a paper ordinance," Carin Wolkenberg says.

She is backing a proposal to put more bite into Evanston's current dangerous-dog law. Under the measure, police – not the animal warden -- would lead investigations to declare a dog dangerous, and the fee for keeping a dangerous dog would jump from $100 to $250. If a dangerous dog was not kept confined, it could be impounded and destroyed.

Several dog owners support the tougher measure.

"You must be in control of your dog, and if not, you've got to take the appropriate measures, whether that's to keep the dog in the house, on a leash," Greg Chub says.

But Evanston Ald. Judy Fiske believes possible confiscation and destruction of a dog goes too far.

"I want to make sure we protect both dogs and owners. I've met only a very few dogs in my life that couldn't be rehabilitated," she says.

Fiske would like an appeals process to make sure some dogs aren't wrongly labeled dangerous. She says the current leash law should be strictly enforced.

The Evanston City Council was expected to discuss the proposed ordinance Monday night.