Posted on 05/09/2025 6:05:28 PM PDT by george76
Police, animal control seek to address leash law violations..
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The recent deaths of a cyclist and a beloved family pet, both the result of off-leash dogs, have renewed calls for greater accountability.
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A Durango man who fell off his bike and later died from his injuries while apparently trying to avoid a loose dog on the Animas River Trail has reignited calls for pet owners to leash their animals in public spaces.
The collision involving the bicyclist and off-leash dog occurred about 2:30 p.m. March 12 on a section of the river trail near the skate park and Schneider Park.
Steven Miller, 76, fell off his bike and hit his head. He died two weeks later from his injuries.
While Durango police have not determined whether the dog or cyclist initiated the collision, officers emphasized that the presence of an off-leash dog was the central issue.
“I just want to be absolutely clear that if anybody tries to make the argument that this is the cyclist’s fault, it was not,” said Durango Police Cmdr. Jacob Dunlop. “This was a dog-at-large issue, and that is what we’re trying to resolve.”
Witnesses said the dog’s owner initially yelled at Miller before realizing how seriously he was injured. The dog’s owner then left the scene, saying he was going to get help, but never returned.
Police have not been able to identify a suspect. The dog was described by witnesses as a medium-sized blond Labrador or pit bull terrier.
Durango police have kept the death and its circumstances under wraps, in part because the investigation remains active and out of respect for Miller’s widow, Laura Miller.
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But Miller’s death has forced the city, police department and animal control to reconsider their approach to leash law enforcement.
“It is a problem. It’s a problem every year. But it seems like it’s getting worse, because it seems like we’re getting more people and more dogs,” said Durango Police Chief Brice Current.
In addition to Miller’s death, multiple incidents of off-leash dogs attacking other dogs have been reported in the past several weeks.
A post on the social media site Nextdoor said a Jack Russel terrier required numerous stitches after being attacked by an off-leash dog last weekend on Animas Village Drive. A week earlier, a dog died after a similar attack on the river trail.
A close friend of the owners of the deceased pet, Melani Woodruff, confirmed the death. She said the owners are devastated by the loss – a tragedy she said was easily preventable.
Woodruff owns two dogs and said she is no stranger to the widespread disregard many Durango pet owners show for leash laws.
She no longer walks her dogs in the parks by the river because she encountered at least one off-leashed dog every time.
“It only takes a few seconds for a dog to be killed,” Woodruff said.
She posted about the attack on Nextdoor and received more than 100 comments from Durango residents expressing similar concerns and questioning the city’s response.
“The situation is that our enforcement is not enforced,” Woodruff said. “Our enforcers don’t enforce. And so that leads to nonchalant, arrogant attitudes.”
City Code says it is unlawful for dogs to be in public parks, playgrounds, trails, recreational facilities or city-owned open spaces without a leash, which must not exceed 6 feet in length.
Sounds like a nice dog,
I’ve always liked animals better than people. I still miss my Keeshond, KeeshaSue who tried to kill my idiot Dem governor one Sunday morning in the park
I’ve worn a helmet for years, but noticed that in Amsterdam no one wears a helmet beyond childhood. They maintain that requiring helmets would discourage bike riding.
They're right. Most people don't like them. Btw, I say it should be up to the person to wear a helmet or not. JMO.
Also at this victim's age he was likely going slower and riding with caution. Oh...and Amsterdam is strange fer sure.☺
Yeah.
Hippies and a university.
When I was a kid, bicycle helmets were pretty much unknown. I never wore a bicycle helmet until I was about 30 and beginning to rely less on sheer luck. I don’t cycle very much these days but always wear a helmet when I do.
I’ve encountered loose dogs while running, including pits. I’ve been lucky; they seemed to just want to bark at me or sniff me, and the owners were typically nearby.
If cyclists think they’re “entitled” then dog owners by comparison think they’re beatified.
If you think there’s EVER justification for a dog owner letting their animal run at large and in the doing put an innocent human life at rise, YOU’RE AN IDIOT.
No mention of helmet or speed.
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Funny that you would immediately blame the dead victim. No helmet and excessive speed on a trail are not crimes. Failure to leash a dog in a public place IS a crime.
I biked to work for years and one day a block from my office. a guy with a dog on a lease is walking across the street not looking at regular traffic and me. I brake for the stupid dog. bike over ends and i break my elbow. i swore i would not ever break for a dog or person not looking at on coming traffic.
He didn’t blame anyone.
Kill ‘em all and let lawyers sort ‘em out!
The reason it’s being brought up is the victim died of a head injury. I for one would be interested to see if the victim was wearing a helmet. No biggy.
The Hippies are all old now. But Boulder has more hard-core Leftists than old Hippies.
But it is good to know when a veteran is killed because some low life drug dealer doesn't have his intimidation animal under control that some FReepers will trip over their own feet rushing to defend the lowlife.
I live in Durango and am a Nam vet. I met him casually at the VA Clinic here in Durango. He was a good man.
Another poster and I were discussing Boulder. I did not say anything about him being a hippie. We were discussing the differences between Durango and Boulder.
I think so.
Yep!
Lots of VN vets became hippies FWIW. One of my closest friends for years was a VN USMC vet and considered himself a hippie. Another USMC vet, pre-VN war, also called himself a hippie.
Personally I never thought of either one as hippies but I certainly wouldn’t have argued with either of them about it because it was always abundantly evident that they were Marines.
I find most bicyclists obnoxious, intrusive and entitled, but Only an idiot would think an adult bicyclist especially one 76 years old would deliberately run into something where he could get hurt with his no doubt expensive bike.
I was state road champion in my day. I was nationally ranked and raced all over the country. I rode 10,000 miles a year while I was racing rain or shine. Sometimes in the winter I would find myself 50 miles from home so cold that I could not feel my feet and had difficulty using my brake levers. I had very little money and sometimes I would be a long way from home, hungry and out of money. And of course we had no cell phones back then. I never used my last dime to call someone for help I soldiered on. I never felt entitled, and I was never rude to anyone on the road.
Anyone who makes blanket statements about the behavior of others is most likely wrong.
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