ALMONT TWP. — Two dogs involved in the attack of a 51-year-old Almont Township woman on Feb. 14, 2020 have been returned to their owner with certain court-ordered restrictions.
The pair of Caucasian Ovcharka Shepherds, owned by Gregory Messer, were among three dogs running loose on Glover Rd., when they charged the woman, knocking her to the ground and repeatedly biting her.
The third dog, deemed to be the “most dominant and aggressive” at the scene was shot at the scene by an Almont police officer.
That dog was transported to a Romeo veterinary clinic and subsequently euthanized.
At the time of the attack, none of the dogs were licensed, resulting in three misdemeanor charges against Messer, and three additional misdemeanors for allowing the dogs to stray without being properly leashed.
On Wednesday, Nov. 4, Lapeer District Court Judge Laura Barnard ruled the dogs be returned to Messer, subject to meeting the following conditions:
•The dogs must be kept inside a 12-foot-by-12-foot kennel inside the owner’s yard.
•The latches of the kennel must be kept padlocked and they are not allowed to run loose.
“If there’s any one instance that these dogs are loose and it comes to this Court’s attention,” Judge Barnard said, “I’m going to continue jurisdiction for that purpose and revise my ruling.
“These dogs can do damage,” she added. “They don’t rise to where I can euthanize them. They’ve already been vaccinated and sterilized, but they cannot run loose in the yard.”
Charges pending
On Friday, Nov. 20, Judge Barnard is scheduled to rule on possible criminal charges against the dog owner.
Tom Wearing started at the Tri-City Times in 1989, covering the Village of Capac as a beat reporter. He later served stints as assistant editor and editor. Today, he covers Imlay City and Almont as a staff writer. He enjoys music and plays drums and sings with various musical groups in the Detroit Metropolitan area.
