Jury Trial or leave it to the judge?

Question

We are going to court with a guy who is sueing us. He says that our dog bit him after he stepped over our gate AFTER we told him she had been acting funny since we brought our son home. (Not aggressive but confused) We did tell him it wouldnt be a good idea for him to go around her without us bc she had never met him before. And that we kept a gate up so she wouldnt bother our baby or our guests. We took precaution so this wouldnt happen!! She is not an aggressive dog! All of our friends and neighbors said they would sign something saying that the first time they met her she was friendly and after she was still friendly! They basically want to let the judge know that she wouldnt have bit him unless he did something threatning to her! Our issue is .... she is a pitbull. We wanted to see what yall thought -- jury or judge trial?

Answer 1

jury

Answer 2

Personally, I would go with the judge who should be more impartial than the jury. People tend to have preconcieved notions about pit bulls and that may carry over into a jury. Also, you say he stepped over YOUR gate...if it was outside your house on your property you could bring up the issue of trespassing. Anyway...stress the fact that he had been warned not to mess with the dog, but did anyway. That should count for something to your credit in court.

Answer 3

There are so many variables here:

The judge - and his integrity / experience with dogs (whether there's a jury or not)

The attorney - and their experience with such cases

The local laws pertaining to dog incidents

I agree on the pitbull controversy ... they can be one of the most sweetly-natured dogs.  It's too bad they have such a negative image.  Either way, you are probably going to wind up having to pay for the medical costs.  Perhaps you can settle this out of court - and hope that you never have to see this guy again.  As far as jury vs. judge --- it's a bit of a toss up.

Answer 4

You're going to lose either way. Try to settle before it goes to trial.

Answer 5

Personally, I am a Doberman Pincer enthusiast so I am well aware of the preconceived negativity many people possess. Anyway, you confused me about the gate thing ... Considering that the incident took place on your property (???) after suitable warnings, I would agree with the first responder and go with the Judge as I have found juries to be quite fickle and unpredictable. TALK TO A LAWYER. You should be able to get an initial interview and recommendation from the phone book and it should be free or at most, cost~$25. One last point ... I would really like to hear that you had some kind of sign posted like "Beware of Dog" or something similar. I always have front and back posted and would recommend others do the same ... even if all we were talking about were a Chihuahua. Incidentally, I like pits, but they can be aggressive but are only mean if taught to be so by idiots. Good luck.