BELLEVILLE – A St. Clair County woman has filed a lawsuit on behalf of the people of Illinois against her neighbors, claiming their "vicious" dogs are too dangerous to be kept as pets.
Plaintiff Bobbie, J. Metscher, on behalf of the people of the State of Illinois, filed the lawsuit in the St. Clair County Circuit Court against Doressa Brinson, Atwart Braggs, and Claude Dontez, III, citing negligence in violation of the Illinois Animal Control Act.
According to Metscher, on July 28, 2022, two Pitbull dogs belonging to the defendants entered Metscher's property by chewing through the fence which separates their homes in St. Clair County. While on the property, the two Pitbulls allegedly killed Metscher's two much smaller dogs and damaged or destroyed much of her personal property.
Metscher claims she was not at home and witnessed the attack on security cameras. She claims she immediately contacted law enforcement. She states that she returned home to meet law enforcement, which had one of the Pitbulls detained. The other Pitbull was allegedly so aggressive that police allegedly had to mace it to be able to detain it.
According to Metscher, she and her fellow neighbors have filed numerous complaints against the defendants who housed the two Pitbulls as well as other dogs. Despite the complaints and the incident, the two Pitbulls have been reportedly returned to the defendants.
Metscher states that under the Illinois Control Act, a citizen may bring an action to deem a dog to be "vicious." Metscher is urging the court to declare the dogs as "vicious" animals under the Illinois Control Act so they can be seized, detained and euthanized.
Metscher alleges the defendants negligently kept animals that they knew to be dangerous and negligently failed to keep the dogs secured, allowing them to roam the premises freely and endangering residents in the area.
The plaintiff is seeking damages in excess of $50,000 and any other relief the court deems proper. She is represented in this case by attorney Jeanna S. Raney of Blake, Behme, Links & Raney, P.C. in Belleville.
St. Clair County Circuit Court case number 23LA0812