11/24/10 Run Over Dogs

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Municipal State Attorney's Office in Zadar
Franje Tudjmana 35
23000 Zadar

November 24, 2010

Subject: Criminal charges for animal torture with fatal consequence, endangering life and property through dangerous public action or means, and failure to avert the immanent danger of a traffic accident to the life of people or to property

Dear Sir or Madam:

Based on media articles and upon receiving numerous reactions from horrified citizens by E-mail and phone, we herewith notify the commitment of a criminal offense of torturing animals in accordance with paragraph 1, Article 260, a criminal offense of endangering life and property by dangerous public acts or means in accordance with paragraph 1, Article 263, and a criminal offense of failure to avert the immanent danger of traffic accident to the life of people or property in accordance with paragraph 1, Article 269 of the Croatian Criminal code.

According to media articles dated November 23, 2010, the previous day a driver of the Liburnia municipal bus in the place Diklo near Zadar, ran over three dogs in front of the eyes of horrified passengers. After the accident the Zadar TV station VOX took photographs of the dead dogs with their internal body organs scattered over the road. According to witnesses' accounts, upon noticing the dogs running from around the corner the bus driver accelerated, ran over them and unconcernedly resumed driving.

Although caretakers bear responsibility for letting their animals without supervision it does not in any way justify the utmost irresponsible and imperiling conduct of the bus driver, who bears great responsibility towards passengers and other participants in traffic. According to witnesses' claims the driver deliberately ran over the dogs driving with improper speed even accelerating, intending consciously to inflict suffering, pain and death to the dogs. The sight of dogs' bloody corpses with their body organs scattered on the road testify of the bus driving speed, failure to apply brakes and intensity of the strike, while the bus company Liburnija d.o.o. admitted that the driver had not applied brakes and failed to halt. Thereby the bus driver exposed the dogs to unnecessary pains and endangered safety and lives of other participants in traffic therewith violating provisions of the Criminal Code.

In addition to simultaneously killing three dogs and inflicting them great pain, the bus driver violated the Animal Protection Act by failing to stop the bus in order to render assistance to the wounded dogs or arranging for assistance to be provided by somebody else as being his obligation according to the Article 6 of the Animal Protection Act, hence we have filed a complaint to the Veterinary Inspection.

The conduct of the bus driver is an example of extremely cruel treatment of animals. It is particularly worrisome that the person responsible for the offense is a professional driver whose unprofessional and heartless behavior brings about reasonable fear of causing similar endangering traffic conducts. Moreover, it also represents a danger for children and other participants in traffic who also could have been victims.

Therefore we ask for appropriate measures to be taken against the perpetrator, whose identity can be ascertained from the police, in order to sanction the perpetrator’s conduct which could have far-reaching consequences in the sense of sending out a message which says it is acceptable to run over and kill animals.

We also demand the malfunctions perceived during inspectional supervision which are not related to the Criminal Code, to please be forwarded to the offense court.

Would you also please notify us in writing on the progress and completion of the procedure grounded on this complaint, so that we can forward the information to the concerned citizens and media.

Yours sincerely,

Luka Oman
Animal Friends

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