[nagdu] New Jersey Laws regarding guide dogs being attacked Plus Text of Law

Wed Aug 27 01:56:33 UTC 2014

Clare,

I wanted to take you one step further to the actual law in the NJ “Title 2C New Jersey Code of Criminal Justice”. I am the President of the NJAGDU of the NFBNJ Affiliate and was very strongly involved in the advocacy of the “Dusty’s Law” becoming the law in New Jersey along with the Seeing Eye, 4H, Joe Ruffalo and the NFBNJ Affiliate plus all the involved friends and families who actively participated in the advocacy of the bill.
As was stated, this bill was signed into law by the New Jersey governor, Chris Christie and became a criminal law affective immediately in January. The actual law you would want to bring to the police is the code they would know it as: “2C:29-3.2 Offenses against Service Animals, Guide Dogs, Degree of Crime; Penalties, Restitution.” This law can be viewed on the “Title 2C New Jersey Code of Criminal Justice” by clicking on: http://lis.njleg.state.nj.us/cgi-bin/om_isapi.dll?clientID=231695186&Depth=2&depth=2&expandheadings=on&headingswithhits=on&hitsperheading=on&infobase=statutes.nfo&record={1903}&softpage=Doc_Frame_PG42 At this writing, the law we are using is the third (3rd) listed on the page.
You have gotten a lot of good and useful responses from your message. The one with the S1907_R1 gives a good explanation but is not the Criminal Law which the police would need. If you or anyone has a problem with the link, I will copy the text of the law prior to my signature.
If I could be of any further help, please let me know. We in NJ also have monthly dial-in conference calls. The meetings are generally the third Monday of the month at 8 PM and you are welcome to join our meetings. We also meet at the NFBNJ State Convention which will be this November 7, 8 and 9 if you or anyone else is interested. 

2C:29-3.2  Offenses against service animals, guide dogs, degree of crime; penalties, restitution.

1. a. Any person who recklessly kills a service animal or guide dog, or who recklessly permits a dog that the person owns or over which the person has
immediate control, to injure or kill a service animal or guide dog, is guilty of a crime of the fourth degree. 

b.Any person who recklessly injures a service animal or guide dog, or recklessly permits a dog that the person owns or over which the person has immediate
control, to injure a service animal or guide dog, is guilty of a disorderly persons offense. 

c.Any person who recklessly interferes with the use of a service animal or guide dog, or who recklessly permits a dog that the person owns or over which
that person has immediate control, to interfere with a service animal or guide dog, by obstructing, intimidating, or otherwise jeopardizing the safety
of that service animal or guide dog or its handler, is guilty of a petty disorderly persons offense. 

d.A person who is convicted of a violation of this section, in addition to any other penalty, shall make full restitution for all damages that arise out
of or are related to the offense, including incidental and consequential damages incurred by the handler of the service animal or guide dog.  Restitution
under this section shall include, but not be limited to: 

(1)the value of the service animal or guide dog; 

(2)replacement and training or retraining expenses for the service animal or guide dog and the handler; 

(3)veterinary and other medical and boarding expenses for the  service animal or guide dog; 

(4)medical expenses for the handler; and

(5)lost wages or income incurred by the handler during any period that the handler is without the services of the service animal or guide dog. 

e.As used in this section: 

"Guide dog" shall mean a dog which has been or is being raised or trained to provide assistance to a blind or deaf person, including but not limited to
a dog that has been or is being raised or trained by a volunteer puppy raiser or staff member of an organization generally recognized as being involved
in the rehabilitation of the blind or deaf and reputable and competent to provide dogs with specialized training. 

"Service animal" shall have the same meaning as set forth in the federal "Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990" (42 U.S.C. s.12101 et seq.) and any
regulations under the act. 

L.2013, c.205, s.1.

Vinny
Vincent G Chaney Jr
Vgc732 at optonline.net
President, NFBNJ New Jersey Association of Guide Dog Users
President, NFBNJ Diabetes Division
Webmaster: nfbnj.org http://www.nfbnj.org

----- Original Message -----
From: Clare Westlund via nagdu 
Date: Friday, August 22, 2014 10:22 pm
Subject: [nagdu] New Jersey Laws regarding guide dogs being attacked
To: "nagdu at nfbnet.org" 

> Hi everyone! Tonight I was out on a walk with Quincy and for the 
> third time in a week someone's rot Wiler got loose. But this 
> time the dog charged Quincy and attacked him. The Dragos are 
> knocked my mom over. We called the police and they came out and 
> spoke with us. They also spoke with the dogs owners. We have 30 
> days to file a complaint. I will definitely do that. I was 
> wondering if New Jersey has any laws regarding service dogs 
> being attacked. The reason the dogs keep getting Moose is 
> because their owner does not fix their fence. Instead, they 
> just temporarily try to prevent the dogs from escaping. The 
> police told them they must get their fence fixed. So hopefully 
> they will. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. By the way, 
> when she was not injured in anyway. I did call the school to let 
> the director know what has occurred. I am hoping that Quincy 
> will not be skittish around other dogs! I am sure the director 
> will call me on Monday morning. Thank you all for your support and
> help.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone
> _______________________________________________