Dog Day in Court

Dog owner sues city, claiming police failed to recover stolen pet

A Dallas man who claims his dog was stolen said police knew where to recover the dog, but failed to act in time.

After 18 months of complaining about it at City Hall, Brad Kirby sued the city in small claims court. 

Kirby said police took seven days to visit the place where they had been told the dog could be found. But by then, the valuable Siberian Husky was gone.

"We're suing, because it's emotional -- it's part of our family," Kirby said.  "It's not just a dog."

But Kirby's day in court Monday did not last long. His lawsuit was dismissed over a technicality, but his lawyer has promised to refile the case.

"They knew where it was, and they waited too long," attorney Michael Rodgers said.

Dallas police said detectives investigated the case and found no proof the dog was stolen.

Kirby left it chained outside his business the day it disappeared in October 2007. Police said Kirby's dogs had broken free before.

A police spokesman said the person Kirby accuses of stealing the dog told detectives that he'd seen it running loose that day. 

"There was a lot of time expended on the department's behalf in trying to assist Mr. Kirby in finding what essentially is just lost property," Senior Cpl. Kevin Janse said.

Aside from the legal technicality that forced Kirby out of court Monday, Dallas City Attorney Tom Perkins said the law is also working against the case.

"The city is immune from claims that it took too long to respond," Perkins said.

But Kirby is not persuaded. He said he plans to keep fighting and has launched a Web site to help pursue his crusade: www.lostdogsofdallas.com.

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