Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Pet policy

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

On 24 Apr 2012, at 1:00 PM, R Philip Dowds wrote:

> What if your community is totally silent on dogs?  That is, you neither allow 
> nor prohibit any specific actions re dogs, cats, birds, snakes, whatever.  It 
> has never even occurred to you discuss the matter.  Are you then still liable?

From what little I know, ignorance of the law is not a successful defense. The 
Board is responsible for ensuring that the law is followed on condo grounds. 
Even if we had no policy, the city policy applies. And in our case, residents 
had complained to the board that the law was not being followed.

"Liability" may only apply if you get to court, but the city will impound the 
dog and levy a fine, which makes you look very guilty. If the fine is on the 
community because it allows the practice by policy or lack of enforcement, it 
can be sured. It is a much better target than an individual because it has more 
money and more ability to borrow money. In our neighborhood, our building looks 
pretty rich.

Sharon
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Sharon Villines
Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
http://www.takomavillage.org