Owner faces charges for dog’s ‘rampage’

Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2004 | 11:10 a.m.

A northwest Las Vegas man whose pit bull killed a poodle and bit an elderly woman in December will face criminal misdemeanor charges for his dog's actions.

Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Deborah Lippis approved the district attorney's charges against Ruddy Gibbs on Monday. Gibbs will be arraigned March 11 in Justice Court for possession of a dangerous animal and for failure to restrain a dangerous animal.

Witnesses say Gibbs' pit bull, Coby, went on a "rampage" the afternoon of Dec. 28 when it escaped from the back yard of Gibbs' home in the 8000 block of Lisa Dawn Avenue, near Buffalo Drive and Flamingo Road.

Coby seriously wounded a cocker spaniel before turning the corner and attacking Sharon Selep, 57, and her toy poodle, Baby. The pit bull knocked Selep down, biting her hands, before it turned on the poodle and "ripped her apart," Selep said.

Charges in such cases are rare, animal control officials say, because of the way animal control laws are written and because officers don't typically have the time to investigate.

Selep and Todd Rogers, owner of the cocker spaniel who was attacked, said they hold no animosity toward Gibbs but saw the filing of charges as a good thing.

"I'm impressed that someone took this event seriously and decided to do something about it," Rogers said. "I think (the charges) will have a positive effect on the community that people will be aware of this and not risk keeping a dog like that."

A similar case earlier in December remains pending because Las Vegas Animal Control officials had difficulty verifying the owners of a Rottweiler that killed an Italian greyhound in an upscale Summerlin neighborhood, supervisor Roger Van Orrdt said.

The greyhound's death led to a police-involved shooting early Dec. 5 when Ryan Schiestel allegedly hired Melvin Gilchrist to either kidnap or kill the Rottweiler in retaliation. A police officer shot Gilchrist when he failed to drop a butcher knife and baseball bat in his hands.

Gilchrist and Schiestel both face felony charges in the attempted dognapping. Their preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 8 in Las Vegas Justice Court.

Van Orrdt said animal control has forwarded its investigation to the city attorney's office, which will decide whether to press charges against the Rottweiler's owners. Neighbors in the Country Club Hills area have said the owners often let their Rottweilers run loose, but there are no complaints on record.

It's difficult for officers to investigate cases, in part because of the law. If an officer does not witness the incident, charges can only be filed if witnesses file affidavits and animal control decides there is enough evidence to forward the statements to prosecutors.

Gibbs was able to be prosecuted in this case because multiple witnesses filed statements and an animal control officer took a report at the scene.

Selep was outraged to learn in December that Nevada's animal control laws also allow a so-called "free bite" before taking action against a dog or its owner. Animals have to grievously injure a human being before they can be euthanized against the owner's will, and then only with a court order.

In Gibbs' case, his pit bull had killed another dog two months earlier, but he was allowed to keep the dog without sanction under the law.

Selep and Rogers say they are working to change that.

"If you want dogs like this then you have to take responsibility," Selep said, adding that the dog should have been put down or at least chained up after the first attack.

Selep, who said she remains physically and emotionally distraught over the incident, said she also plans to sue Gibbs to recover her medical bills and to ensure what she went through does not happen to anyone else.

"I don't want anybody to suffer like I'm suffering," Selep said. "I don't want anybody to see something they loved so much ripped apart."

Selep's attorney, Mark Saggese, said he plans to file a lawsuit in excess of $100,000 against Gibbs within the next week because of what he called the emotional damage the attack inflicted on Selep.

"My client is not psychologically healthy," Saggese said. "She's in shock, and she's in treatment for it."

Saggese said Selep often breaks into tears and is unable to perform normal daily functions because of the loss of her poodle.

Saggese said he hopes the lawsuit will "send a message" to pit bull owners and others who own dangerous pets to take greater precautions with their dogs.

"You want to change the law -- that is a long road," Saggese said. "But if you want to force pet owners to recognize their liability and responsibility, they need to see someone get nailed with a big lawsuit."

Gibbs, who did not know about the charges or the planned lawsuit when interviewed by the Sun Tuesday, voluntarily put down his pit bull after the attack. He said his dog jumped a 6-foot fence to get out the day of the attack.

Gibbs said he was shaken by the incident and was trying to make things right. He has already paid for the cocker spaniel's veterinarian bill from the attack and has set up a payment plan to cover the bill for Baby, which includes the poodle's cremation.

Gibbs said he offered to pay Selep's medical bill and to replace the glasses she lost in the attack, but Selep has not given him those bills.

Gibbs, who still owns a terrier, says he will "never own another pit bull."

"They have too many crazy instincts that you can't control ... and you don't know until it is too late," Gibbs said.

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