TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV/Gray Florida Capital Bureau) – Dog owners in Florida could soon face harsher penalties if their dog hurts or kills someone.
The Senate approved a bill that also requires those who own dogs considered dangerous to carry liability insurance on Monday afternoon.
Florida is among the states with the most dog attacks. The United States Postal Service says 193 mail carriers were attacked in 2023, putting Florida seventh in the country.
“No one ever expects this to happen,” Tom Rock said.
Pam Rock died in 2022 after she was attacked by five dogs delivering mail in Putnam County.
“These five dogs escaped from their owner’s home. Now this wasn’t the first, second, third. It was the fifth attack from this set of dogs. This kind of stuff has got to stop,” Pam’s brother Tom said.
Tom Rock is happy that lawmakers are holding dog owners accountable for attacks.
“This isn’t somebody tugging at britches or pants, etc. This is a dog that is going to take a serious bite or two and cause significant danger,” Tom Rock said.
“If those were my kids, I would absolutely want to know if someone just didn’t care enough to take care of a dog they knew was dangerous or if this dog attacked my family completely unprovoked, that there would be accountability,” Sen. Jay Collins, (R) Tampa, said.
Florida Politics
The Pam Rock Act would do several things, including euthanizing dogs that kill or seriously hurt someone, microchipping dangerous dogs, and requiring dangerous dog owners to carry liability insurance. Dogs would be deemed dangerous by local animal control jurisdictions after an investigation.
“Really, what I think people want to see is that people should be held accountable under the letter of the law. Sometimes, without laws like this, that just doesn’t happen,” Sen. Collins said.
For the Rocks, this bill is more than just public safety.
“It gives us a sense of closure that we’ve been able to do something that will help other people,” Tom Rock said.
The bill doesn’t include any breed and carves out whether the dog was protecting its home or was provoked.
The Senate made changes after the House approved the bill last week. It now heads back to the House before Governor Ron DeSantis can sign it.
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