Vocal Local Dogs Versailles Officials

A district magistrate recently threw out harassment charges filed against a Versailles woman who put a sign in her front yard criticizing the borough's dog warden and the president of council. According to Raymond Pefferman in the Daily News (subscribers-only link), Carolyn Leitzell accused Ken Ferree of Ferree Kennels and Council President Walter Winkler of cruelty to animals, alleging that Ferree strangles stray cats (no, I'm not making that up), and that he was destroying cats without ID tags as soon as they were found.

Ferree denies the allegations. I'd note that Animal Friends has Ferree's address on its website --- and I suspect they or the Western Pennsylvania Humane Society, which investigates animal cruelty complaints and which operates Elizabeth Township's Fallen Timber Shelter --- would have something to say if he were some kind of serial cat-strangler.

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A quick aside: I don't own any pets, unless you count the rabbits that build nests in my back yard (and Port Vue Pete), because I'm terribly allergic. (I do like dogs, though, and I find cats pleasant enough company.)

So forgive me if I don't understand why people don't get their dogs or cats properly licensed and tagged. Yes, I understand cats like to roam around, and yes, I understand collars and tags can come off. But you're not doing your furry friends any favors by letting them run around without identification.

Anyway, Ferree and Winkler filed harassment charges against Leitzell, which District Judge Edward Tibbs has dismissed, according to the News (story not online).

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I'm no lawyer, but I think I can understand Tibbs' ruling. Pennsylvania's harassment statute (Title 18, Section 2709) says that a person is guilty of harassment if they engage "in a course of conduct or repeatedly commits acts which serve no legitimate purpose." Clearly Leitzell felt she had a legitimate purpose --- she was criticizing public officials.

The fact that her criticisms aren't accurate (according to Ferree and Winkler) doesn't constitute harassment.

On the other hand --- and again, I am not a lawyer --- I wonder if Ferree and Winkler have grounds for a defamation suit. Under New York Times vs. Sullivan, public officials must prove malice before they can win a defamation suit, and that raises several questions.

First, as an elected councilman in Versailles, Winkler is clearly a public official. But as the appointed dog warden, is Ferree? Second, did Leitzell act with malice, or is she merely wrong?

If Leitzell is criticizing a matter of "public interest and concern" and not acting out of malice toward Ferree and Winkler, then under Hoeppner vs. Dunkirk Printing Co., she's arguably protected by the U.S. Constitution even if (as Ferree and Winkler say) she's got her facts incorrect.

There's another wrinkle, however. Leitzell was one of the leaders of a petition drive that caused McKeesport council to stop using Ferree as the city's animal control officer back in December. An attorney might well argue that she's attempting to drive him out of business, and claim that as prima facie evidence of malice.

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Incidentally, I found a posting from Leitzell on a North Carolina-based web forum for animal protection officers. It identifies her as being from White Oak, not Versailles.

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Wow! You didn't expect a heavy First Amendment discussion at the Tube City Almanac, did you? These are the kinds of questions for which attorneys receive hundreds and thousands of dollars in legal fees, yet you're getting all this good stuff for free. (Arguably it's worth every penny.)

By the way --- nothing in this Almanac entry should be construed as legal advice, and anyone who relies on my interpretation of any law is a fool. Hire a competent attorney if you need legal advice.

On the other hand, if there are any real attorneys or lawyers out there who care to comment, feel free to add your comments below.

And if you believe that posting a comment constitutes providing legal advice, go ahead and bill the Almanac for your time while you're at it --- the Tube City Tiger hasn't had a good laugh for several days.

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Breaking News ... Late Update (10:06 a.m.): According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, members of the Elizabeth Forward High School band were passengers on a school bus that collided with a tractor-trailer on the Pennsylvania Turnpike between the Morgantown and Downingtown interchanges, shutting down the toll road for several hours. The driver was seriously hurt while 30 other people sustained what are described as "minor injuries." More at the Inquirer's website. EF's website is here.