I live in rural Georgia where there is no leash law; however, my neighbor claims I killed his dog. The dog was on my property running at the fence and at a livestock trailer loaded with goats barking and trying to get through the fence at my goats. It was attempted twice to turn the dog and run him off; however, that did not work so I shot the dog. The dog had no collar or tag, was flea-bitten, smelled like a swamp, and appeared to have gone without food several days. When I gave the man a description of the dog, he claimed the dog one time on the phone and later said that it didn't sound like his dog; however, I have been subpoened to consider a warrant for cruelty to animals for killing "his" dog. He did not come to look at the dog to verify it was or was not his. What are my chances of winning this hearing? What should I do?
Optional Information: State/Country: Georgia Already Tried: Looking up Georgia leash laws.
Your chances of winning are about 80% (i.e. very good). This is because the dog was on your property and there is no one to dispute your allegation or account of what the dog was doing (attempting to attack your livestock) or discredit your account that prior to shooting the dog you attempted to thwart the threat to the livestock without shooting the dog.
Thanks for your quick response. There was actually a witness here on our property and he attempted to scare the dog away to no avail. He saw the dog attempt to get to my goats on the other side of the gate as well as those in the trailer. He asked my husband if he was going to shoot the dog and my husband said he would not unless the dog ran at the goats or them. By having this witness who is willing to appear on my behalf, do you think I can rest easy and appear at the hearing without an attorney?
Yes, this will be an easy case for the judge to rule in your favor.
Experience: Negotiate, Draft, and Review many complex commercial agreements each year.