A judge Friday granted the owner of four dogs police said attacked and killed another dog in Oxford’s Jackson Cove Park last July a form of probation that could see her criminal record wiped clean within a year.
Emphasizing the fact that the owner, Vickie Tkacz, was not with her four Newfoundland dogs at the time of the incident, Judge Burton Kaplan said Friday’s resolution “is an equitable ending to a sad incident for everyone involved.”
“I’m going to give her the opportunity to earn a dismissal,” Kaplan said earlier in summing up the case. “She wasn’t with the dogs … but she was the owner of the dogs.”
Police said Tkacz’ Newfoundland dogs killed Roxi, an 11-year-old Labrador mix at Jackson Cove Park on July 26.
Three days later, Tkacz was charged with obstructing the duty of an animal control officer, failure to obey a quarantine order, four counts of allowing dogs to roam and four counts of animal nuisance.
In court Friday, Tkacz pleaded guilty to two counts of allowing a dog to roam and Kaplan fined her $35 for each offense. The judge then heard her application for accelerated rehabilitation, a form of probation whereby defendants see the charges against them dropped if they remain out of trouble for a period of time set by the court.
Kaplan said several lawyers representing various parties involved — Tkacz, the town, the family who owns Roxi — had put “a lot of time and effort” into resolving the case.
Kevin Condon and Karen Fisher, lawyers representing the town and the family, respectively, said during the hearing that their clients took no position as to whether the judge should grant the AR request.
Condon said the town had worked out a “rather stringent” agreement with Tkacz to ensure the safety of residents.
“The town is satisfied that will take care of any future problems,” Condon said.
But Gaetano read a lengthy letter from state Animal Control Officer Barbara Godejohn, who investigated the case and obtained a warrant for Tkacz’s arrest and objected to the application.
The letter said Tkacz had run afoul of several laws and that “we need to send a message in this case.”
Tkacz’s lawyer, Ralph Crozier, said his client was “extremely upset that anybody’s animal was harmed” and that she immediately paid all of the vet bills for Roxi in the aftermath of the incident.
Tkacz herself then addressed Kaplan briefly.
“I’m very sorry for everything that happened,” she said.
In granting the application, Kaplan set a number of conditions for Tkacz to satisfy, such as:
- Within a week she must give $2,500 to the town to partially pay for a bill to the vet who had the dogs in his custody after the attack.
- She must not allow the dogs involved in the attack to return to Oxford.
- Within 6 months, she must pay the remaining balance, $1,500, of the vet bill.
Outside court, Crozier praised Judge Kaplan for doing “a wonderful job, because he had to balance all sorts different factors in doing this.”
Friday’s appearance did not end Tkacz’s legal wrangles in connection with the case. Roxi’s owners, the Severson family, filed a civil lawsuit in the case last August which is still pending.
Crozier said that he hopes to resolve an insurance issue in that case soon, after which the lawsuit should be resolved quickly.
He also said two dogs involved in the case due to be returned to Tkacz as a result of the court disposition Friday would be sent out of state.
Previous stories:
More Twists And Turns In The Oxford Dog Attack Case
Civil Lawsuit Filed In Oxford Dog Mauling
Arrest Warrant Released In Oxford Dog Mauling
