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Selectboard closes vicious dog bite hearing after accepting evidence; owner absent
Summary
The Starksboro Selectboard accepted documentary evidence into the record and voted unanimously to close the May 12 hearing; no owner representative appeared and no enforcement action was recorded at the meeting.
At the conclusion of testimony on May 12, the Starksboro Selectboard accepted written materials into the hearing record — including the complaint, a return service notice, the town dog ordinance, an expired rabies vaccination certificate, a VSP incident report, body-cam footage, an ER visit summary, the victim’s impact statement and related medical bills — and heard final comments from witnesses.
Tony Porter moved to close the hearing; David Schmidt seconded, and the motion passed unanimously. The record notes that no representative of the dog owner attended the hearing. Selectboard member Carin McCarthy disclosed a personal connection to the area, saying her parents live on the road and "have experienced altercations with this dog," and the board said it would retain the submitted documents in the record for administrative follow-up.
The meeting minutes do not record any immediate enforcement orders or a vote removing the animal from town; the hearing was closed at the session’s end and administrative retention of the evidence was recorded.
