Debating Hera's Fate
By Corey Lyons
Contra Costa Newspapers
Feb. 14, 2001
SAN FRANCISCO -- In a highly publicized and emotional hearing Tuesday at City Hall, the owners of a dog involved in a fatal mauling last month characterized the animal as a lovable household pet with a heart murmur.
Their portrait of Hera -- a muscular, English mastiff-Presa Canario dog -- contrasted sharply with that of testimony from a procession of witnesses, most of whom explained why they feared the 113-pound canine.
And in a significant blow to the dog's owners, Animal Care and Control Capt. Vicky Guldbech recommended during the hearing that the dog be destroyed.
In any case, Hera's fate -- whether she lives or dies -- will be determined in two weeks.
That's the amount of time San Francisco police Sgt. William Herndon, who doubles as a hearing officer for animal cases, has to make his judgment. If he believes the animal will be a threat to society, Herndon has the authority to have the dog destroyed.
The hearing was the latest development in the ongoing story of Hera and Bane, another mastiff-Presa Canario dog involved in the Jan. 26 mauling death of Diane Alexis Whipple in San Francisco.
Whipple was killed while she tried to enter her Pacific Heights apartment. Bane, who outweighed the victim by 10 pounds, gripped Whipple's neck; he was destroyed by animal control authorities later that night.
Hera's role in the bloody attack has not been clearly understood.
The dogs' owners, attorneys Robert Noel and his wife, Marjorie Knoller, who live in the same apartment complex as Whipple, maintain that Hera spent her time gnawing at Whipple's clothing.
"She's a rescue dog with a Level 6 heart murmur," Knoller said, adding that she and her husband would likely move if they got the animal back.
The couple will face criminal charges if prosecutors can determine they knew the animals were dangerous.
Herndon, who has presided over such hearings for eight years, seemed particularly troubled by Knoller's insistence that Hera played no significant role in the assault.
Knoller, who was at the scene with the dogs, testified that Hera cannot be held liable in the attack.
"I believe Hera was trying to protect me from Bane," said Knoller, who briefly wept while recounting her version of the incident.
Herndon questioned Knoller how, amid the chaos of the attack, she was able to clearly state that Hera was only tearing at the victim's clothing and not participating.
"She was nowhere near Ms. Whipple's torso," Knoller said. "She never got into my peripheral vision."
Perhaps the most damaging testimony against the attorneys came from Animal Care and Control and San Francisco police officers who responded to the scene.
After the attack, Knoller said she locked Bane in her apartment's restroom while Hera was in a bedroom.
Michael Scott, an officer with Animal Care, said while authorities struggled to tranquilize Bane, he could hear Hera "crashing at a bedroom door, barking and growling."
Scott admitted that he was afraid while he and a police officer approached Hera, who was ramming against a glass door. "She had this great growl that I'll remember for a long time," Scott said.
Police Officer Leslie Forrestal said she was not prepared for the grisly scene as she left a sixth-floor elevator. The victim, nearly naked, was sprawled on the carpet next to a blood-splashed wall.
"She was lying face down, her clothing had been shredded and she was riddled with dog-bite wounds," Forrestal testified.
Scores of reporters and TV cameras crammed into a fourth-floor meeting room to cover the hearing.
Herndon and a city official sat behind a large, coffee-colored desk while witnesses took the stand in a session that lasted 2 1/2 hours.
More than a dozen people testified Tuesday, including a former neighbor of the attorneys who said he was bitten in the buttocks by Hera while leaving the building's elevator last summer.
"There was not a lot of room when I got off the elevator, so I had to go around them," David Moser said. "As I did, Hera bit me in the buttocks."
Because the injury didn't break the skin, Moser testified, he decided against pressing charges.
Noel disputed Moser's version, saying the young man was not bitten at all.
He testified that Moser had "hit his buttocks on the elevator door handle," while bumping into Knoller as he rushed from the elevator, apparently trying to race to the bottom of the building against a friend who was using the stairwell. Noel's account drew hisses from the crowd.
Another witness, veteran letter carrier John Watanabe, testified that he once had to use his mail cart as a shield against the aggressive animals to ward off their advances.
"I was fearful for my life," he said of the incident, which lasted about 20 seconds.
Noel, who took the stand before his wife and spoke for about 35 minutes, dismissed that testimony.
"I never even saw him and I had a clear view of the letter cart," Noel said. "Hera was barking at the letter cart and Bane was nowhere near Mr. Watanabe."
Herndon, who oversees about 150 vicious-dog hearings each year, said 25 to 30 percent of them result in the animals being destroyed.
Appeals are allowed, Herndon said, but seldom result in a reversal.
Knoller said before the hearing that she would definitely appeal if Herndon decides to have Hera euthanized.
The couple did not present any witnesses.
Meanwhile, Noel revealed Tuesday that he is filing a $100 million claim against the California Department of Corrections for allegedly disclosing "confidential information" about himself, his wife and their recently adopted son, Paul "Cornfed" Schneider. Authorities say Schneider, 38, a Pelican Bay State Prison inmate, was at the center of an illicit ring to breed Presa Canarios, including Bane and Hera, from behind bars.
Contra Costa Newspapers
Feb. 14, 2001
SAN FRANCISCO -- In a highly publicized and emotional hearing Tuesday at City Hall, the owners of a dog involved in a fatal mauling last month characterized the animal as a lovable household pet with a heart murmur.
Their portrait of Hera -- a muscular, English mastiff-Presa Canario dog -- contrasted sharply with that of testimony from a procession of witnesses, most of whom explained why they feared the 113-pound canine.
And in a significant blow to the dog's owners, Animal Care and Control Capt. Vicky Guldbech recommended during the hearing that the dog be destroyed.
In any case, Hera's fate -- whether she lives or dies -- will be determined in two weeks.
That's the amount of time San Francisco police Sgt. William Herndon, who doubles as a hearing officer for animal cases, has to make his judgment. If he believes the animal will be a threat to society, Herndon has the authority to have the dog destroyed.
The hearing was the latest development in the ongoing story of Hera and Bane, another mastiff-Presa Canario dog involved in the Jan. 26 mauling death of Diane Alexis Whipple in San Francisco.
Whipple was killed while she tried to enter her Pacific Heights apartment. Bane, who outweighed the victim by 10 pounds, gripped Whipple's neck; he was destroyed by animal control authorities later that night.
Hera's role in the bloody attack has not been clearly understood.
The dogs' owners, attorneys Robert Noel and his wife, Marjorie Knoller, who live in the same apartment complex as Whipple, maintain that Hera spent her time gnawing at Whipple's clothing.
"She's a rescue dog with a Level 6 heart murmur," Knoller said, adding that she and her husband would likely move if they got the animal back.
The couple will face criminal charges if prosecutors can determine they knew the animals were dangerous.
Herndon, who has presided over such hearings for eight years, seemed particularly troubled by Knoller's insistence that Hera played no significant role in the assault.
Knoller, who was at the scene with the dogs, testified that Hera cannot be held liable in the attack.
"I believe Hera was trying to protect me from Bane," said Knoller, who briefly wept while recounting her version of the incident.
Herndon questioned Knoller how, amid the chaos of the attack, she was able to clearly state that Hera was only tearing at the victim's clothing and not participating.
"She was nowhere near Ms. Whipple's torso," Knoller said. "She never got into my peripheral vision."
Perhaps the most damaging testimony against the attorneys came from Animal Care and Control and San Francisco police officers who responded to the scene.
After the attack, Knoller said she locked Bane in her apartment's restroom while Hera was in a bedroom.
Michael Scott, an officer with Animal Care, said while authorities struggled to tranquilize Bane, he could hear Hera "crashing at a bedroom door, barking and growling."
Scott admitted that he was afraid while he and a police officer approached Hera, who was ramming against a glass door. "She had this great growl that I'll remember for a long time," Scott said.
Police Officer Leslie Forrestal said she was not prepared for the grisly scene as she left a sixth-floor elevator. The victim, nearly naked, was sprawled on the carpet next to a blood-splashed wall.
"She was lying face down, her clothing had been shredded and she was riddled with dog-bite wounds," Forrestal testified.
Scores of reporters and TV cameras crammed into a fourth-floor meeting room to cover the hearing.
Herndon and a city official sat behind a large, coffee-colored desk while witnesses took the stand in a session that lasted 2 1/2 hours.
More than a dozen people testified Tuesday, including a former neighbor of the attorneys who said he was bitten in the buttocks by Hera while leaving the building's elevator last summer.
"There was not a lot of room when I got off the elevator, so I had to go around them," David Moser said. "As I did, Hera bit me in the buttocks."
Because the injury didn't break the skin, Moser testified, he decided against pressing charges.
Noel disputed Moser's version, saying the young man was not bitten at all.
He testified that Moser had "hit his buttocks on the elevator door handle," while bumping into Knoller as he rushed from the elevator, apparently trying to race to the bottom of the building against a friend who was using the stairwell. Noel's account drew hisses from the crowd.
Another witness, veteran letter carrier John Watanabe, testified that he once had to use his mail cart as a shield against the aggressive animals to ward off their advances.
"I was fearful for my life," he said of the incident, which lasted about 20 seconds.
Noel, who took the stand before his wife and spoke for about 35 minutes, dismissed that testimony.
"I never even saw him and I had a clear view of the letter cart," Noel said. "Hera was barking at the letter cart and Bane was nowhere near Mr. Watanabe."
Herndon, who oversees about 150 vicious-dog hearings each year, said 25 to 30 percent of them result in the animals being destroyed.
Appeals are allowed, Herndon said, but seldom result in a reversal.
Knoller said before the hearing that she would definitely appeal if Herndon decides to have Hera euthanized.
The couple did not present any witnesses.
Meanwhile, Noel revealed Tuesday that he is filing a $100 million claim against the California Department of Corrections for allegedly disclosing "confidential information" about himself, his wife and their recently adopted son, Paul "Cornfed" Schneider. Authorities say Schneider, 38, a Pelican Bay State Prison inmate, was at the center of an illicit ring to breed Presa Canarios, including Bane and Hera, from behind bars.
posted by Corey at 10:07 PM
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