Congo a story of hope and a better future.

April 28, 2008 : 10:10 PM

The story of Congo will go down in the record books as one of compassion and support of a German shepherd by those who never met him.

Written by George DeGiovanni, Best Friends Network.

The story begins on June 5th, 2007 when a German shepherd named Congo attacked and injured a landscaper, Mr. Giovanni Rivera. Congo was put on trial and found guilty. The sentence was that of death, death for protecting his mate, their pups and his master, Mrs. James.

Many organizations rallied in support of Congo. Save Congo was started by Guy James and had many supporters who organized many rallies. The Best Friends Network NJ Community had covered this story as it came into the public eye, some of those stories included….

Congo set free

Numerical Tally by the Govenor's Office

Public outcry to save Congo - Rally on Tuesday 11/13

There even was media coverage on the Congo story as nj.com posted stories written by journalists like Linda Stein of The Times and the coverage by the DJ’s from New Jersey 101.5,Casey Bartholomew and Ray Rossi. Online media like Zootoo.com also played a role in getting the story out to everyone. Just the other day, April 25th, Zootoo.com posted a story with a recap titled Family Saves Dog from Death Row, Spurs 'Congo's Law'

On April 3rd, the supporters of Congo received the following message…..

CONGO IS FREE
We just got back from the court house, and the nightmare is over. congo and the pups are free. No labels have been imposed, I will update the website with more info it should go live in a week or so. But most importantly i want to thank everyone for everything they have done to support us all.

Now the work begins for a better tomorrow for dogs here in NJ and eventually the United States. NJ Dog Ordinances and laws are out dated. They don’t allow for reasonable doubt and they don’t allow for the prosecutor and/or judge to see the event in the eyes of the dog. Congo’s Law changes that.

A1603 Revises vicious and potentially dangerous dog law; designated Congo’s Law.
Agriculture and Natural Resources
Last Session Bill Number: A4597 (2R) S3010

Cohen, Neil M. as Primary Sponsor
Diegnan, Patrick J., Jr. as Primary Sponsor
Merkt, Richard A. as Primary Sponsor
O'Scanlon, Declan J., Jr. as Primary Sponsor

1/8/2008 Introduced, Referred to Assembly Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee - Introduced - 13 pages

This will be the second time that Congo’s Law goes before the Assembly Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee. This time Congo is free due to an agreement between the James and the Prosecution.

This gives an opportunity for the Assembly to realize that these laws are out dated and that the agreement between the James and the Prosecution can be set into place for a “first bite”. Last year Congo’s Law got to the Assembly floor but was never put into place.

Also on April 3rd, I had gotten an e-mail from Save Congo that read:

Our work is just beginning Once again thank you all for the support you have given us through this terrible ordeal. This is a victory for all pet owners. Know let’s get Congo’s foundation going so that we can avoid this from happening again to anyone. I spoke to Neil Cohen today and he was very excited as to the outcome, he is going to keep pushing for congos law. We need everyone to send him letters of support as this law will save many of our pets, and unnecessary deaths of our pets. Please have everyone you know send letters to him and cc all your local legislators. LETS MAKE A LOT OF NOISE

Assemblyman Neil M. Cohen (Democrat)
District Office:
985 Stuyvesant Ave.,
Union, NJ 07083
(908) 624-0880

To show your support for Congo, please visit www.myspace.com/congosnation.

The story to save one dog continues and will now include any dog that may ever bite. One bite should not be a death sentence.

Photo Credit: Picture of Congo and Lucia. Courtesy of the James family.

Comments

July 3, 2008 at 10:20 PM
posted by: JerseyGrrl

The very sad, actually tragic 2nd chapter of the story of this family and their dogs needs to be told.
It is relevant and I think there are lessons to be learned.
I am an animal lover and support animal rights.
From the very beginning I expressed misgivings about this story and the media slant, the many different versions of what happened and the hatred that people were directing at immigrants, etc.

After the attack on the landscaper, in all the many versions of the events, in all the posts on this forum, I never read a single one that focused on the owner's responsibility to be able to control their dogs. I do NOT think any of the dogs should have been killed, but I do think they all should have been removed from the family that proved they could not control them.

The most recent sad news update (and I am looking for a credible version of what happened) is that Congo attacked and bit Guy James' 75 yr old mother-in-law and has since been euthanized.

Again animals pay the price for human short comings and failures. What a tragedy... more so because it could have and should have been prevented.

I am so angry with that family and so sad for those dogs.