Q & A: Pick Up After Your Pet Ordinance

Questions and Answers

Q: Do Pet owners have to pick up after their dogs or cats in Harrison?

 A: Yes. The Town ordinance requires that owners pick up after their pets

Q: I’m not the owner of the Pet, I was just helping out a neighbor to walk their dog, do I have to pick up after the dog?.

A: Yes.  The Ordinance broadly defines Owner as “any person who shall possess, maintain, house or harbor any pet or otherwise have custody of any pet, whether or not the owner of such pet.”  So if you are walking the dog, you are responsible for picking up after the dog.  The same would apply to a cat.

Q: What can happen if you fail to pick up after your pet?

A: You are subject to a $1,000 fine for failure to pick up after your pet. 

Q: Who can issue summonses for failure to pick up your pet’s “solid waste”?

A: Members of the Police Department, Department of Public Works, and Health Department of the Town of Harrison can issue summonses.  Police have no limitations on who can issue Summons but Summons from the Department of Public Works and Health Department can only be issued by designated town employees.

Q: What is the Title of the Law Requiring the Pick Up of Pet Solid Waste?

A: The Title of the Law is “Disposal of Pet Solid Waste”

Q: What is the Number of the Ordinance entitled “Disposal of Pet Solid Waste”

A: The Number of the Ordinance is 9.32

Q: Is there a possibility of Jail Time for failure to pick up after your pet?

A: Yes.  The Ordinance states that the provisions of the General Penalty apply to the violation of the Ordinance.  The General Penalty provision states “Any person convicted of an infraction and/or violation of an ordinance of the town is punishable by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) or by imprisonment not to exceed ninety (90) days, or a period of community service not exceeding ninety (90) days, or by both such fine and imprisonment or community service.”

Q: Who decides whether you have violated the Disposal of Solid Waste Ordinance?

A: A violation of the Municipal Ordinance would come before the Municipal Court Judge in Harrison who would hear testimony and render a decision and impose the monetary penalty and decide also whether imprisonment is appropriate and/or community service.

Q: How likely is the Municipal Court Judge in Harrison to impose an imprisonment term?

A: Highly unlikely.  Unless there is egregious conduct over a sustained period of time that was not abated, it is highly unlikely that the Municipal Court Judge in Harrison would impose a prison term.

Q: How likely is the Municipal Court Judge in Harrison to impose community service?

A: The most likely penalty to be imposed by the Municipal Court Judge in Harrison is a monetary penalty but Community Service is the second most likely or could be used in combination with the monetary penalty in more egregious cases where the monetary penalty has not been a sufficient deterrent.