Two women take on county over service animal policies

Melanie Brown says she doesn't know what she'd do without Odessa, her big moose of a dog. Brown, who suffers from severe back problems, says the bouvier-chow mix helps her stand up, pulls her along, even anchors her from behind with its leash as she descends flights of stairs.

"She's amazing," Brown said. "She senses how much help I need and does it."

Brown insists Odessa is a service animal, which means she can bring the dog into any public building. But, she said, Cowlitz County officials kicked her out of the Hall of Justice in July, claiming Odessa doesn't really assist her with her disability.

The 60-year-old Ryderwood resident said she had to abandon a lawsuit she'd filed against a homeowners' association because she and Odessa weren't allowed into the courtroom.

She has since filed a claim for nearly $730,000 against the county over the incident.

Brown isn't alone. Dawn Moran, 49, of Longview said she and her service dog, a chocolate Lab named Hoss, were barred from this summer's Cowlitz County Fair. Moran, who also suffers from severe back pain, said a reserve sheriff's deputy demanded that she demonstrate exactly how Hoss helps her. When she dropped her wallet and Hoss scooped it up, she said, the deputy scoffed: "Ha, my dog can do that."

"I was in tears," Moran said.

The cases have raised a difficult question for the county, which is trying to keep unruly animals out of its buildings while still complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Both Brown and Moran claim county employees asked specifically about their disabilities, which is forbidden by the ADA.

And Moran said one of the county employees who confronted her at the fair wanted to see documentation proving her Lab is a service dog, also an ADA violation.

If the county's workers are that confused about the law, she said, disabled people could be blocked from accessing the most basic government services.

"I guess that's the part that kind of bothers me the most," she said.

The women began lobbying the commissioners late last month to reverse a new county code, which was implemented just before the episodes and is aimed at discerning real service animals from pets.

"What happened to me is just the beginning of a countywide pattern that's developing based on this new policy," Brown said.

In response to the complaints, the county has said it will alter its policies. It also said last week that its new rules were poorly implemented and that employees weren't properly trained to follow them.

Commissioner George Raiter said the policy stems largely from a series of bizarre events at the Hall of Justice.

One woman brought a monkey into the building, he said. The animal, which the woman called her "comfort monkey," ran loose in the lobby. Someone else brought a snake. Another showed up with a bird.

Officials, he said, clearly needed a mechanism for excluding "animals that are inappropriate."

Superior Court Judge Stephen Warning said Friday that Odessa, Brown's shaggy dog, is a classic example of why the new policy is necessary.

Warning, who had been hearing Brown's case against the homeowners' association, pointed out that the Americans with Disabilities Act allows businesses to remove service animals that are disruptive.

"I was told by security that her dog smelled so bad that people were having to get up and leave the courtroom," Warning said.

When he asked Brown what service the dog performs, he said, the situation became "laughable."

"She said, 'Well, she pulls me.' ... As she's facing me, the dog's trying to pull her in another direction. It was clear the dog was not trained to assist her in any way."

Warning said he of all people would be especially forgiving of a service animal in his court. He and his wife have trained three seeing-eye dogs, one of which was sleeping at his feet when the incident unfolded.

"I'm probably going to be as liberal as anybody on these things," he said. "But there's a line somewhere."

The federal government's ADA guidelines say animals that pick things up, like Moran's Lab, or help with "mobility impairments," like Brown's dog, qualify as service animals.

In addition, a memo on the law from the U.S. Justice Department says a business "may ask if an animal is a service animal or ask what tasks the animal has been trained to perform, but cannot require special ID cards for the animal or ask about the person's disability."

The ADA also says that businesses cannot require anyone to show documentation proving the animal performs a service.

Sunnie Smith, who has helped teach classes about service animals for Disability Resources of Southwest Washington, said the county was "absolutely wrong" in the cases of both Brown and Moran.

"There's no doubt about it -- they have broken a federal law," said Smith, who lives in Castle Rock.

The county's new policy, which commissioners approved July 8, says county workers should, in suspect cases, ask animal owners to "provide sufficient evidence verifying that the animal meets the definition of a service animal."

"If the animal cannot perform the identified tasks or services," the rules said, "the animal will be removed from the building or program."

The policy also said that service dogs should be identified by a harness, cape or backpack.

Raiter said the policy's implementation was "not well thought out" and that county employees "weren't properly trained" in how it should be applied.

On Friday, the county said it will clarify the policy. A revised draft says employees can "identify the training that the service animal has received and the tasks the service animal has been trained to perform." The county also said it would strike language suggesting animals "should be fitted with identifying equipment" or that owners should "provide sufficient evidence" that their animal provides a service.

Michael Evans, a county prosecutor who assists with civil matters, said his office is still investigating Brown's allegations.

"We want to do what's right for the public and make sure we do the right thing," he said.