PLEASE PLEASE consider contacting the Governor's Office, they are taking a tally, as Congo the Shepherd is scheduled to be euthanized today.

I just phoned and a young female staffer noted my displeasure with the events and that I'd prefer to see the Governor put a stop to this travisity.

NEW JERSEY's Governors Office : (609) 292-6000.

Please call the New Jersey Gov's office today! They are taking a tally of the phone calls they get, so if you can, please give a call! Congo is scheduled for euthanasia today, unless the governor stops it!
I just called them and was told that they are still counting calls.

http://petloverstips.com/ForTheLoveoftheDog/news-updates/congo-the-german-shepherd-may-die-tomorrow (http://petloverstips.com/ForTheLoveoftheDog/news-updates/congo-the-german-shepherd-may-die-tomorrow)

NJ Gov's office: (609)292-6000

How can someone come on YOUR property, ignore your orders, beat your dog till bloody w/a rake, lay hands on your wife dragging her to the ground and still win a $250,000 Insurance settlement and your Dog be deemed by the courts as vicious and to be destroyed. :mad::mad::mad:

Dog's fate devastates family (http://www.nj.com/news/times/index.ssf?/base/news-3/1194498519125940.xml&coll=5)
Judge orders shepherd destroyed after vicious attack

Thursday, November 08, 2007 BY LINDA STEIN

PRINCETON TOWNSHIP -- A family whose beloved German shepherd faces death for having led a dog attack on a landscaper is devastated by the news but vows to continue to fight to save him.

"He needs to come home," said Guy James, the Princeton homeowner who managed to call his dogs off the landscaper, but only after the worker was severely mauled in the June 5 attack.

"He's innocent. He did nothing more than protect my wife. He never bit anyone until she was grabbed and pulled to the ground," James said.
Congo has been ruled vicious by a municipal judge and ordered put down.
"As a family, it's destroyed our way of living," said James, 46. "We're just consumed with the whole thing."

The landscaper, Giovanni Rivera, has won a $250,000 insurance settlement as a result of serious injuries he sustained in the attack, which occurred when he and others disobeyed instructions from James not to get out of their car until Congo and several other dogs on the property could be sequestered for safety.

Rivera, a Trenton man, was on the 10-acre, fenced property on Stuart Road to do yard work. The landscaping crew had arrived before 7 a.m., about an hour before they were expected.

James, who was about to take a shower, called out a window to them in Spanish, telling them to get back in their car and wait because the dogs were in the backyard being fed.

While the dogs, two 2 1/2-year-old German shepherds and their four 6-month-old puppies, had not had problems with people on the property before, James said in an interview that he didn't want them to interfere with the workers. Also, he wanted the workers to wait until he was dressed so that he could tell them what to do, he said.

Instead, Rivera and another worker got out of the car after a few minutes and the dogs began to bark. That worker began to hit the dogs with a metal rake and Elizabeth James, Guy James' wife, yelled for him to stop. Meanwhile, Rivera, who was afraid of the dogs, grabbed her from behind and pulled her to the ground, causing her to scream. At that point Congo began to bite and scratch Rivera and some of the puppies joined in.

That judge must be a libie, I'm surprised he didn't give all the workers their green cards too.

That judge must be a libie, I'm surprised he didn't give all the workers their green cards too.

My thoughts exactly Dub!!!!!

Unfortunately the judge has very little leeway in the case here. In most states, if a dog bites a human for any reason other than the dog itself was being attacked, it's deemed vicious and legally has to be put down.

Other than that, this sounds like a case of miscommunication and bad judgement on the part of the landscapers. But I've met a TON of people who are irrationally terrified of any dog that barks, period. I have an Australian Shepherd, which is a very gentle breed but loves to bark a lot. A lot of people are convinced she's going to attack them as soon as she barks and I'm sure if I wasn't there to tell them she's harmless (just loud), they would attempt to harm her with whatever they had on hand simply out of fear for their life.

And throwing the dog's owner on the ground and making them scream in ANY situation, let alone when the dog's already upset, is just plain stupidity.

I hope this gets worked out correctly in the end but I doubt it will. The laws are very strict on dog attacks.

:sad:

Unfortunately the judge has very little leeway in the case here. In most states, if a dog bites a human for any reason other than the dog itself was being attacked, it's deemed vicious and legally has to be put down.

Other than that, this sounds like a case of miscommunication and bad judgement on the part of the landscapers. But I've met a TON of people who are irrationally terrified of any dog that barks, period. I have an Australian Shepherd, which is a very gentle breed but loves to bark a lot. A lot of people are convinced she's going to attack them as soon as she barks and I'm sure if I wasn't there to tell them she's harmless (just loud), they would attempt to harm her with whatever they had on hand simply out of fear for their life.

And throwing the dog's owner on the ground and making them scream in ANY situation, let alone when the dog's already upset, is just plain stupidity.

I hope this gets worked out correctly in the end but I doubt it will. The laws are very strict on dog attacks.

:sad:

Australian sheperds are generally gentle but, they can let out a mean growl if they feel you're in their territory, and that includes being with their people.

Does your dog like to play soccer? My future in-law's australian loves it when we kick the ball and then he retreives it. He also chases whatever is flying by, including 737's (at 35k feet).

I think one day (when we have the room) we'll have either an autralian sheperd or a golden retreiver.

So... back on topic. It looks like a case of mis-communication and then the dog being protective of it's owners. I don't see how the guy should be getting $250k.

Unfortunately the judge has very little leeway in the case here. In most states, if a dog bites a human for any reason other than the dog itself was being attacked, it's deemed vicious and legally has to be put down.

The judge is the one who made the final determination. It was the Judge's call and he didn't have to do it.

I don't know the New Jersey Animal laws, but the situation is completely different than if the dog just attacked for NO reason. In Virginia, while the dog would be required to undergo an evaluation, it would not automatically be deemed vicious. It was doing it's job by protecting it's property and it's owner who was obviously in destress. :|

I'm planning on writing the Judge in this case or at the very least the District Attorney's office once I've calmed down and am able to be more tactful about my feelings. :rolleyes:

I was convicted of owning a vicious animal once. Get this .. Sadie would bark at this guy. He claimed since he was epileptic she could send him into seizures. She was always in the yard .. never went after him. Since my house was on his way to the store he couldn't change his walking habits. So Sadie's bark was deemed vicious. I was put on probation for 2 years .. I told the judge I'd wait to start up my drug and prostitution ring. LOL

Australian sheperds are generally gentle but, they can let out a mean growl if they feel you're in their territory, and that includes being with their people.

Does your dog like to play soccer? My future in-law's australian loves it when we kick the ball and then he retreives it. He also chases whatever is flying by, including 737's (at 35k feet).

Most Aussies definitely have a strong guard instinct and yes, this can lead to a lot of growling if not properly socialized and trained. However they're also very people-oriented dogs and I have yet to find one who would willingly bite a person without VERY good reason. Not to say they don't exist, but I haven't met one.

Ours is scared of soccer balls but loves tennis balls and her light-up blinky ball we play with in the winter. It's almost dark already when I get off work so I got a large plastic ball that blinks very bright when thrown and fits in my Chuck-It. I have yet to see ours chase an airplane though...:rolleyes:

The judge is the one who made the final determination. It was the Judge's call and he didn't have to do it.

I don't know the New Jersey Animal laws, but the situation is completely different than if the dog just attacked for NO reason. In Virginia, while the dog would be required to undergo an evaluation, it would not automatically be deemed vicious. It was doing it's job by protecting it's property and it's owner who was obviously in destress.

I'm planning on writing the Judge in this case or at the very least the District Attorney's office once I've calmed down and am able to be more tactful about my feelings.

I'm not familiar with Jersey laws either (or Virginia laws for that matter) but I have seen many places where if a dog bites someone for any reason, it's automatically deemed vicious and recommended for termination.

I agree though, this is a travesty and a shame. To me the biggest factors are the fact that they threw the owner to the ground and that they had puppies. It's also obvious that the landscapers had no clue how to interact with dogs and panicked. Just convinces me more that the general American public are morons... :(

dunno. you tell me. the east coast is full of crazy ish. some bad, some good. mainly crazy though......

dunno. you tell me. the east coast is full of crazy ish. some bad, some good. mainly crazy though......

And you say this from California...

Isn't that like the pot calling the kettle black? :rolleyes: :razz:

Ugh. That makes me sick! A lady I knew had a husky and a yorkie dug under the fence and came over into her yard, the husky killed it, and the courts ordered the husky destroyed. And I'm in OK, a red state!!!


My dogs are my home defense system. Granted they are only 35 and 40 lbs, but they sound scary. :D

This guy screwed himself when he warned the landscapers to stay in there cars because the dogs were out. He let everyone know that he thought the dogs could be a danger. It's like if you have a "beware of dog" sign, it just tells everyone you know that your dog is a threat to the public. It's like saying "hey my dog is a vicious killer, watch out"

That judge must be a libie, I'm surprised he didn't give all the workers their green cards too.

Because the workers were identified in the article as illegal immigrants?

I had no idea such bigotry was acceptable on EOC. That being the case, I have an extensive repertoire of fantastic jokes!

Because the workers were identified in the article as illegal immigrants?

I had no idea such bigotry was acceptable on EOC. That being the case, I have an extensive repertoire of fantastic jokes!

I know you are kidding but why does everyone assume that because people want to protect the borders that those folks are bigots? The IS a legal method to enter this country.......our grandparents parents did it the right way..........sorry for the rant

The fact that the home owner get penalized in this case just shows how we've come. The owners wife gets thrown to the ground and its the dogs fault?

I think the landscapers were stupid. They were warned. I think the guy should counter sue them for throwing his wife to the ground. According to the article the landscapers began hitting the dogs first with teh rake, so they started the entire sequence. There was no reason for the one to grab the guys wife and throw her to the ground. My best friend has an 85 pound pitbull. His dog may be a pitbull ,but is is actually the biggest wuss on earth, unless it feels the children are being threatened. His dog would lick you to death showing its love for you before it would even consider snapping at you. This dog is even scared of teh little ****zu across the street, the ****zu came out one day and bark, his dog went like lightning back into the house to hide. But if anyone ever threw his wife to the ground, they would wish his dog attacked them, as he would do far far worse to them then whatever his dog could do to them.

...
But if anyone ever threw his wife to the ground, they would wish his dog attacked them, as he would do far far worse to them then whatever his dog could do to them.

Reminds me of a quote by the incomparable Fernando Martinez:

"...You think you can shortchange me? I know people, my friend, I know people! And not just the womens! I'm going to make your ugly wife a fat, ugly widow! And then I will take care of her! She will know the passion that you cannot give her. That's right baby, Fernando will take you..."around the world", and especially... "downtown". "

Hypothetical question:

(Mods, if this line of question is out of line for this forum, then feel free to delete.)

Someone with a law enforcement or criminal defense background please enlighten me on the legality of the issue:

1. The landscapers were on the landowners property at an unexpected time, yes?

2. The landscaper(s) had physically grabbed and placed to the ground someone on property, yes?

In New Jersey, do the landowner(s) have the right to claim self-defense and subdue every one of the landscapers with his/her 870 shotgun? What are its "castle" laws?

"Officer, when he grabbed her, I was fearing for her life and I was fearing for my own life. They clearly outnumbered us, and we had to defend ourselves."

If the above is legal, then is this Judge setting the unspoken precedent to NJ residents with dogs that is it better to eliminate ANY person who may make ANY type of claim against one's dog if that person is on one's property?

Is it more (legally) expedient to claim self-defense than to explain to a judge who is ignorant of canine behavior?

Do I condone hurting people? No. Will I fight back if my dog (family) is threatened? Yes.

Again, this is all hypothetical. I'm in California, where self-defense doesn't exist. (Cut your hand while breaking in? I'll have to pay you for installing unsafe windows. :rolleyes:

Don't forget this was reported by the liberal media and the facts as reported are highly suspect. So can we make judgements based on the information given?:smile:

Straying off topic.

I read something like this, and it really ticks me off. Isn't it just like the law to favor the one in the wrong and then for the insurance company to give him money, that is stupid. I am sure if the guy was breaking into the house and tripped over an end table in the dark, some lawyer out there would sue the victims and get some type of settlement for his robber/client's busted shin. This kind of stuff makes me so angry.

I'll tell you what...if some guy with a rake came into my yard and started beating my dogs and dragging my wife to the ground....I would have made sure my dogs kicked his tail and bit his personality off.

Normally no one is stupid enough to wander into my yard. But one day some drunk woman wanted to come in and beat on my door looking for someone, she grabbed a BBQ spatula out of the back of her truck and used it to swing at my dogs (They are fenced, she came in through the gate), she left before I got out there --I found the spatula in the yard.
I hate the idea that I could be liable for some type of bite because of a stupid drunkard!:mad:

I read something like this, and it really ticks me off. Isn't it just like the law to favor the one in the wrong and then for the insurance company to give him money, that is stupid. I am sure if the guy was breaking into the house and tripped over an end table in the dark, some lawyer out there would sue the victims and get some type of settlement for his robber/client's busted shin. This kind of stuff makes me so angry.

Then you'll enjoy this news story (http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,22658062-421,00.html?from=mostpop) from Australia. I'm sure it will brighten your day as it has brightened mine.

That judge must be a libie, I'm surprised he didn't give all the workers their green cards too.

OH, man, this comment ?|$$3$ me off. What on earth makes you think the judge is a liberal? The fact that NJ's laws are screwed up? Contrary to right wing ideals, a judge can't just randomly rewrite the law to suit his views. If he did that, he'd be AN ACTIVIST JUDGE.

I hate the fact that you have me defending the judge because this was clearly a forked up ruling, but it has nothing to do with the judges politics. It has everything to do with bad laws. And this comes from a raging, radical liberal.

Now, can we PLEASE keep the politics off this site? If you want to talk politics, you go back to the freepers.

Thank you.

Ouch my knuckles hurt! I will make this a little more on topic.:rolleyes:

I guess I see it different. The owners invited the landscapers to their property. The dogs should have been under control. There may or may not have been a misuderstanding about the time. Sounds like things quickly got out of hand.

Did you happen to see where the landscapers arrived a whole hour early?! 8)

Sure they were invited, but you don't arrive an hour early (6 AM as opposed to 7 AM) while the dogs are having THEIR time to eat breakfast and relieve themselves after being inside all night.

You aren't likely to refuse to listen to the owner when he tells you to get back in your car and then take a rake and beat the dog(s) to a bloody pulp, drag his wife to the ground and then sue them! :mad:

Regardless of how you feel about the story I choose to post verse the other stories out there. They all read the same. Congo the Shepherd was doing his JOB and now his life is in danger.

I've made my phone call against the euthanisia of Congo, please consider doing the same.

PLEASE PLEASE consider contacting the New Jersey's Governor's Office and let them know how you feel. They are in the midst of taking a Poll to see if the Governor should step in and put a stop to this travisity.

Please call the New Jersey Gov's office today! They are taking a tally of the phone calls they get, so if you can, please give a call! Congo is scheduled for euthanazed today, unless the governor stops it!
I just called them and was told that they are still counting calls.

http://petloverstips.com/ForTheLoveoftheDog/news-updates/congo-the-german-shepherd-may-die-tomorrow (http://petloverstips.com/ForTheLoveoftheDog/news-updates/congo-the-german-shepherd-may-die-tomorrow)

NJ Gov's office: (609)292-6000

I did a search on this case and the details as presented by the article you posted are subpect. I would encourage anyone who has strong emotions on this to seek out the original news reports. I read several and the report posted is clearly leaving out details and testimony. I will post the addresses of some of the articles later. At work now and the boss is leaning a little close....

http://petloverstips.com/ForTheLoveoftheDog/news-updates/congo-the-german-shepherd-may-die-tomorrow

For those not familiar with Congo’s case:

Two landscapers/gardeners, illegal immigrants, were working at the family’s house
They arrived an hour early
They were told by the husband to stay in their truck until he could get out of the shower and get some clothes on and put the dogs away
The husband speaks Spanish and spoke to them in Spanish so there is no question they understand what they were told to do
They directly disobeyed the husband and walked into the yard where the wife had just pulled into the driveway
The two adult German Shepherds and their puppies came running
The gardeners panicked
ONE GARDENER GRABBED THE WIFE AND WRESTLED HER TO THE GROUND, USING HER AS A PROTECTIVE SHIELD
Congo thought his owner was being attacked and went after the gardener
The gardener used his rake to beat at the puppies and inflicted some injuries on them
The gardener changed his story three times (interesting note on official bias: when the owner said the gardener changed his story five times, the dog warden said “No, he only changed his story 3 times.”)

I sent an e-mail.

I sent an e-mail.

Can you be more specific? I send e-mails all the time.

Can you be more specific? I send e-mails all the time.

To the New Jerseys governers office. Probably won't read all the e-mails today, but I still wanted to voice my opinion.

Email sent. This is a copy of what I wrote:

I'm writing to ask for clemency for Congo the German Shepherd I've been reading about on the web. I have researched this situation and I have neither read or heard of anything that the dog did that would constitute being vicious and dangerous. If someone threw my wife to the ground, I would HOPE my dog would bite them! German Shepherds are known for being good security dogs and this was no exception. He felt his owner was threatened (especially since she screamed and was thrown to the ground) and responded appropriately.

Being a governor, I would guess you have security guards around you at most times out in public. If you were outside and someone ran up to you and threw you to the ground or even grabbed you, I would imagine your security guards would not treat the person very gently.

What the judge is doing in this case is equivalent to sentencing a security guard to death for doing their job and protecting their client. This should never have gone this far but you have the power to stop this travesty of the justice system.

Please do what is right and spare this dog an unnecessary death.

I think it's also a travesty that the governor is essentially trying the dog in the court of public opinion. As a leader, he should do what is RIGHT, regardless of its popularity. But I suppose he's a politician at heart and will do whatever it takes to win popularity :(

To email, go here: http://www.nj.gov/governor/govmail.html

Choose "Law and Public Safety", then on the next page choose a Sub-Topic of "Pardons and Clemency".

Quote:
I'm writing to ask for clemency for Congo the German Shepherd I've been reading about on the web. I have researched this situation and I have neither read or heard of anything that the dog did that would constitute being vicious and dangerous. If someone threw my wife to the ground, I would HOPE my dog would bite them! German Shepherds are known for being good security dogs and this was no exception. He felt his owner was threatened (especially since she screamed and was thrown to the ground) and responded appropriately.

Being a governor, I would guess you have security guards around you at most times out in public. If you were outside and someone ran up to you and threw you to the ground or even grabbed you, I would imagine your security guards would not treat the person very gently.

What the judge is doing in this case is equivalent to sentencing a security guard to death for doing their job and protecting their client. This should never have gone this far but you have the power to stop this travesty of the justice system.

Please do what is right and spare this dog an unnecessary death.


Pretty close to what I said --I would as much as "hope" my dogs were that protective, if they felt I was in danger.

Pretty close to what I said --I would as much as "hope" my dogs were that protective, if they felt I was in danger.

I refrained from saying that if someone threw my wife to the ground, my dogs would be the LEAST of their concerns...:mad:

E-mail sent... this makes me so sad. I hope the e-mail server goes down because of all the messages.

Any updates on this for those of us who are curious?

Let me start by saying that I do not think that Congo should be put down.

After reading several articles this is the one that seems the most balanced.
IMHO the landscaper was entitled to some compensation for his injuries. At a minimum coverage of his medical expenses. I know that this comes down to believing one printed article over another.

http://packetonline.com/articles/2007/11/09/the_princeton_packet/news/doc4733d1bd1bc28219072988.prt

I know and accept that I don't have the popular opinion on this. Hell Fiona Apple is on Congo's side and I love her music!

Shred away if you must.:-):-)

:) I will not shred you, you have a right to your beliefs. Seriously? Fiona Apple? I LOVE her music too! :razz:

And thanks for the article, while I do see things a little different now, I still ultimately believe that Congo shouldn't suffer.

I would end up in jail before I allowed someone to take my dog off it's property, plain and simple!

Any updates on this for those of us who are curious?

I'm working on that. I can't find anything, so I've asked a group I know who would know. ;-)

For the moment, Congo will remain at the Shelter, but he is ALIVE and as well as can be expected.

News story and video: German Shepard Stays On 'Doggie Death Row' (http://wcbstv.com/local/german.shepard.doggie.2.566960.html) :-D

Thx for the link & update :D

Hey Congo! They need you down at the border. On second thought maybe not. You'd probably end up in prison for doing your job.