Fight4yourights: Massachusetts Gov Deval Patrick repeals BSL

Massachusetts: New state law will nullify cities’ BSL

With New Bedford Animal Control Officer Manny Maciel by his side today, Gov. Deval Patrick signed a new, broad-based animal control bill into law, that, among its many provisions, prevents the regulation of dogs based solely on breed.

Stating clearly that “No city or town shall regulate dogs in a manner that is specific to breed,” the legislation ends debate in New Bedford and elsewhere on whether pits bulls should be banned.
The law further states that “no dog shall be deemed dangerous … based upon the breed of such dog.”
Reports out of Lowell and Worcester, MA, indicate that the breed-specific ordinances in both cities—and by extension, any other MA city with BSL—will be nullified by the new MA state law when it goes into effect on October 31. The new state law prohibits municipalities from regulating dogs based on breed.

Many attorneys in MA seem to agree that MA “home rule” does not allow city ordinances to conflict with state law. Even if cities do not officially repeal their BSL, the laws will be preempted and nullified by the new state law when it goes into effect.

Jonathan S. Rankin, a Framingham-based lawyer and chairman of the Massachusetts Bar Association’s Animal Law Practice Group, said the new law says communities can make additional ordinances as long as the language is not breed-specific.

Many thanks to the MSPCA for keeping us up to date. Visit their page to learn more about the many changes that this bill brings to Massachusetts:

http://www.mspca.org/about-us/press-room/2012/mspca-angell-joins-governor.html

Is the APBT the problem ?

I agree there's a problem but BSL means that the crimes of a small amount of dogs a year punish million's of dogs who haven't done anything wrong and never will.

I guarantee 90 percent of the dogs who attack are irresponsibly owned abused or trained by bad people to be bad not to mention back yard breeders cross breeding for looks & size instead of temperament and disposition cross breeding is a tricky thing.
That's the problem with half of the Pit bulls today they took people aggressive breeds and crossed them with Pit bulls a breed with extreme determination and drive and hung papers on them as Purebreds thats how Pit bulls went from 25 to 55 lbs for 150 years to 70 to 135 lbs in the last 10 or 15 years. What they did was create monsters that are " Dangerous" Not all of them are bad but the ones that are can do alot of damage.

Because of this allot of good dogs and their owners suffer.Pitbulls are a very loyal & loving breed by nature who are being exploited. There are 100 other ways to fix this problem tattoo id numbers on dogs that attach them to their owners Large fines for unregistered dogs when you register you have to bring your dog in an evaluation... anything except BSL...Are we going back to hanging women for witch craft next.

To say a whole breed is born bad is just ignorant and narrow minded. With the amount of Pit bulls that are abused fought trained or just encouraged to be bad Im surprised there's not more problems out there .

Bsl does nothing to address the real problem it just victimizes good dogs & responsible owners & it lets the guilty ones go out and buy another dog of another breed and repeat the whole thing over again. Do you truly think if Pit bulls were gone tomorrow ..there would be no more dog fights or people would stop abusing them.
Sounds like People might be the real problem not Pit bulls.

We have made mistakes in our country in the past and have come along way in just 300 years but BSL is like taking ten steps back,,it's the easy way out to blame a dog when the real problem is people. People fight the people abuse them people make them aggressive people poorly breed them, and now people want to blame them and kill them. Tell me how that's fair how its in Society's best interest... its a travesty and makes me ashamed of a country that I truly love.

It doesn't take a genius to know what they are doing in Denver Florida Ohio & Georgia is disturbing only sick people would do this
& the rest of the people who can put a stop to this madness and haven't are not much better. I thought everyone was innocent until proven guilty in this country.... where is due process ?

The Constitution of the United States guarantees us these rights, and countless thousands died to ensure us of these rights and every time we allow them be violated we dishonor all those who died for our country.In Ohio you can have Lions Tigers & Grizzly bears but Pitbulls are Illegal...... Ya that makes sense !

Index

Massachusetts Gov Deval Patrick repeals BSL

Massachusetts: New state law will nullify cities’ BSL