What is my course of action if uncooperative dog owner won’t give me the dog’s name or vaccination and licensing info?
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What is my course of action if uncooperative dog owner won’t give me the dog’s name or vaccination and licensing info?
My labrador was attacked by a pitbull that was unleashed. During the attack, I was fighting as hard as I could to break it up. I was bitten by the dog but the wounds will heal without stitches. the When cops arrived on the scene, the dog owner refused to give the police any details on the dog. I feel like they should have arrested him for not cooperating and quarantined the dog to ensure my safety in order to test the dog for rabies. How does a person get away with not answering the police? What can I do now to find out about this dogs status? I’m very scared. I heard that rabies is fatal.
Asked on July 13, 2017 under Personal Injury, New York
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 6 years ago | Contributor
The only way to legally compel them to give you this information would be to file a lawsuit seeking a court order forcing the release of the information, or if you are suing for monetary compensation (e.g. for your vet bills), you could potentially get the information during the lawsuit since the parties generally have to provide relevant information upon request pre-trial (in "regular" court; or in small claims court, at trial). There is no way other than a lawsuit, unfortunately, to force another person to give you information or answers.
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