Coroner recommends changes to dangerous dog rules after Kariong death

NSW Council rangers could have increased powers to protect people from aggressive dogs following a coronial inquest into the death in 2021 of a five-week-old baby on the Central Coast.

Deputy State Coroner Carmel Forbes released a series of recommendations on January 17 after examining the circumstances of the death of the baby, referred to as MJ.

“I am satisfied that MJ died sometime on 10 or 11 July 2021, from fatal injuries caused when he was attacked inside the family home by a dog, which was the family pet,” the coroner said.

The dog was euthanised on July 11.

A month earlier, a neighbour’s dog was killed in MJ’s family yard but no-one witnessed what actually happened.

Central Coast Council had issued a “Notice of Intention to Declare a Dog to be a Restricted Breed” which, if imposed, would have put restrictions on the family dog but that process takes some time.

The owner had 28 days to provide proof that the dog was not a restricted breed or crossbreed of a restricted breed.

On July 6, 2021, the owner contacted Council and advised that his wife had recently given birth and asked for an extension of time to comply with the Notice. 

He was granted an extension of two weeks, with the new expiry date to be July 22, 2021.

If the dog had been declared restricted, it would have had to be kept in an enclosure or muzzled when not enclosed according to the Act

One of the Coroner’s recommendations is to include such restrictions during the notice period of an intention to declare a dog restricted.

Information from other fatal dog attacks in NSW was used to provide context for some of the recommendations.

The recommendations included rewriting parts of the Animal Companion Act to strengthen council officers’ ability to respond more effectively to dog attacks.

These would include officers being able to override assessments of a dog’s breed or temperament and to be able to declare a dog dangerous or menacing or restricted.

The Coroner said other parts of the Act could be made clearer about whether “being lawfully on a property” included the interior of buildings or just the outside areas.

And further changes would remove trespassing as a problem when dealing with dangerous dogs.

The Coroner explained that the CA Act currently means that an offence is not committed if a dog attack resulted from a person or animal trespassing on the property on which the dog was being kept, irrespective of the severity of the attack.

“This may be the case where, for example, a child enters the yard in which the dog is housed with the intention of quickly retrieving a ball that has unwittingly gone into the yard,” the Coroner said.

Her report also talked about the difficulty in accurately identifying and distinguishing between an American Staffordshire Terrier and an American Pit Bull Terrier or a crossbreed.

“On this basis, it is plausible to infer the likelihood of a number of dogs in NSW that are registered as American Staffordshire Terriers and which are, in reality, American Pit Bull Terriers or crossbreeds thereof,” her report stated.

The Coroner said the Minister for Local Government has committed to a review of the companion animals legislative framework, which will include considering recommendations from dog attack coronial inquests and recent parliamentary inquiries into pounds and veterinary services.

The existing regulatory regulation requires that all dogs be identified (microchipped) and registered but dog owners’ fitness or capacity to own a dog is not tested.

“The possession of dogs poses considerable risks to children and vulnerable adults,” the Coroner said..

“Especially if the dog owner has inadequate awareness of the risks and does not put effective measures in place to minimise such risks,such as by securing and controlling their dog.”

She said councils recognise that there is likely to exist, within their boundaries, a large population of unregistered dogs, of varying and unknown breeds, but face practical limitations in being able to address this problem.

The OLG had also informed the Court that it will further analyse the issue that emerged during the course of the evidence in dog attack inquests about the difficulties that council officers experience when seeking to take enforcement action.

Central Coast Council said it was aware that the Coroner’s report and its recommendations were now with the OLG to review, and to be considered against existing legislative controls.  

“Council will implement any new regulations or requirements from the OLG,” a spokesperson said.

“Central Coast Council is pro-active in its education of dog owners on the Central Coast with the aim to ensure they are responsible pet owners.  

“Council runs regular free events to help educate owners with dog training and behaviour management, including an annual Dogs Day Out event which, this year, will be held on February 22, free micro-chipping days, and in November 2024, Council also initiated a series of free dog training sessions.”

Dogs on the Central Coast need to be microchipped and registered, and dog owners with dogs considered to be dangerous breeds need to abide by regulations requiring responsible ownership.

For all information on Council’s Responsible Dog Ownership visit:  https://www.centralcoast.nsw.gov.au/residents/property/responsible-pet-ownership/dogs