A recent case tells us that the right kind of laws will make us free to defend ourselves from vicious dogs without fearing criminal charges, but that we also need to elect local officials who will apply those laws with fairness and common sense. Florida’s Stand Your Ground law has been held to protect a man from serious criminal charges after he killed a pit bull that threatened to attack him on a public street.
In Gabriel v. State, No. 4D2024-1502 (Fla. 4th DCA Oct. 16, 2024), a man and his dog were out for a walk when an off-leash pit bull suddenly appeared. The pit bull, showing clear signs of aggression, backed them into a corner. The man tried to shoo it away and even fired warning shots over its head, but the dog would not retreat. Left with no other option, he shot and killed it.
The local prosecutor charged him with cruelty to animals while in possession of a firearm, discharging a firearm in public, and discharging a firearm in a residential area. When the trial court refused to consider Stand Your Ground as a defense, he appealed—and won.
The first lesson from Gabriel is that courts recognize pit bulls can be deadly, and people have the right to invoke self-defense to protect themselves and others. This is especially true in states that make it clear that a person can stand his ground when under attack.
But there is another lesson, too.
I have been consulted on multiple cases where people were harshly prosecuted for defending themselves against dog attacks. In every case, the charges were an outrageous misuse of prosecutorial discretion. Not one of these defendants acted wrongly under the circumstances. Their only “crime” was making sure they and their families stayed alive.
Too often, prosecutors aggressively go after dog attack victims while showing shocking leniency toward the owners of dangerous dogs that maim or kill people.
Here’s the point: too little attention is paid to elections for district attorneys. While we focus on presidential politics and the federal government, the local officials who truly shape our daily lives are often overlooked.
For our rights to be protected, all three branches of government must function correctly. Legislators must enact the right laws—not weak or poorly written ones. Police and prosecutors must focus on the most critical cases, not just easy wins. Courts must make the tough decisions that hold real offenders accountable.
Hopefully, voters are learning. And as they head to the polls, they should remember to pay attention to every race—especially the ones further down the ballot.