People convicted of or under investigation for animal cruelty can now be banned from Paws Dog Park in Jacksonville Beach after the City Council voted 7-0 on Aug. 17 to pass Ordinance No. 2026-8239 on second reading.
The measure gives City Manager Mike Staffopoulos, or a designee, the authority to immediately deny, temporarily suspend or revoke a person's membership and park-access privileges. A last-minute amendment proposed by council member John Wagner and adopted unanimously added the word "temporary" before "suspend" and "suspension" in the enforcement language. The change was a compromise addressing due-process concerns raised by council members Greg Sutton and Dan Jansen during debate, according to the Beach Gazette.
How the Ordinance Reached the Council
Council member Sandy Golding brought the issue forward during an April council briefing after learning that a person accused of animal cruelty at an Atlantic Beach dog park had lost membership there. When Golding reviewed Jacksonville Beach's code, she found no comparable provision for Paws.
Golding said at the Aug. 17 meeting that she did not want to be in a position of allowing someone accused of cruelty to continue using the park.
"I wouldn't want to have to say it's okay for this person to continue to come to the park," Golding said, the Beach Gazette reported.
The ordinance defines an "animal cruelty offense" as any violation of Chapter 828, Florida Statutes, which includes misdemeanor animal-cruelty offenses and aggravated animal cruelty, a third-degree felony. Substantially similar offenses under other states' or federal law also qualify. (Source citation needed — see note below.)
Due-Process Concerns Shaped the Final Language
City Attorney David Migut told the council that due-process requirements scale with what is at stake and that losing dog park access does not carry the weight of incarceration or another serious deprivation of rights. Staffopoulos asked Migut to confirm that a temporary suspension imposed during an investigation could be lifted, and membership reinstated, if the investigation did not substantiate the allegation. Migut confirmed that interpretation, the Beach Gazette reported.
Council member Bill Horn, who had sought broader language at an earlier reading, backed the final version.
"You don't have a constitutional right to go to the dog park," Horn said, according to the Beach Gazette.
Anyone barred from the park can seek reinstatement by submitting a written request to the city manager and completing an animal cruelty prevention and education course. A person who enters or remains at Paws after a denial, suspension or revocation may be removed and faces possible arrest and prosecution for criminal trespass.
The council first approved the ordinance on first reading Aug. 3, after directing Migut to draft the language. A proposal at that reading to include crimes against minors was debated but deferred for future consideration. The new rule was modeled on a comparable provision at Atlantic Beach's dog park, which prompted Golding's review of Jacksonville Beach's code.
