SF Official Pushes to Reinstate 'Dog Court'

San Francisco Supervisor Stephen Sherrill is pushing to restart the city’s dormant “dog court” after dog-bite reports rose again last year. (abc7news.com) ABC7 reported that San Francisco Animal Care and Control sent 926 dog-bite reports to the state in 2025, up from 868 in 2024. Sherrill said the city already has funding and an authorized position for the hearing officer needed to run the court. (abc7news.com) The hearings are the step that turns an investigation into an order. Without them, the San Francisco Police Department’s Vicious and Dangerous Dog Unit can investigate bites, but orders for muzzling, obedience training, or euthanasia can stall. (abc7news.com) (media.api.sf.gov) SFist reported that 61 dog-bite cases are waiting for hearings. The outlet said the court was suspended in 2024, briefly returned in January 2025, and closed again in July after funding and staffing problems. (sfist.com) Mission Local reported in March that San Francisco’s dog court had been on hiatus for seven months while bite incidents kept climbing, with especially sharp increases in the Tenderloin. The publication said underreporting there is common because some victims fear conflict with neighbors who own the dogs. (missionlocal.org) The Department of Police Accountability describes itself as a civilian-run agency that oversees police conduct, and city policy documents say a hearing officer determines whether a dog is legally deemed vicious or dangerous. That designation can trigger restrictions on both the animal and its owner. (sf.gov) (media.api.sf.gov) Sherrill brought the issue to the Board of Supervisors this month and said he expects the hiring question to come up in May. Board records show Sherrill sits on the Rules Committee and was present at the board’s April 7 meeting. (abc7news.com) (sfbos.org) The fight now is less about whether San Francisco has dangerous-dog rules than whether the city will staff the system that makes those rules stick. (abc7news.com) (sfist.com)