A Sagamore Trail woman faces a $90 fine for violating New Canaan’s leash law after allowing her German shepherd dog to roam free on several occasions in Adams Lane area, officials said.
Residents of Sagamore and Adams had seen the woman and dog walking around the neighborhood with the animal off-leash—along the side of the road and in people’s front yards—and though the practice bothered them, for a long time nobody would make a statement, according to Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt, head of the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control unit.
A complaint had been lodged by a resident of the neighborhood back in March, but police were unable to at that time to identify the specific dog and owner, she said.
Finally, on July 15 a complainant who feared the German shepherd came to police headquarters to issue a statement, and Animal Control officers found the Sagamore Trail woman and fined her for violating Section 6.8.a of the Town Code.
That section reads, in part: “Except in a dog run established by the Town, no person shall bring any dog into any public park, public playground, public school grounds, public parking lot, public street or sidewalk unless the dog is on a leash or lead that is no more than 25 feet in length and under the control of its owner or keeper at all times.”
The fine comes to a total of $136 after a new $46 state fee is applied, Kleinschmit said. Officers advised the woman that if she is going to walk on public property with her dog that it must be leashed, according to a police report.