Stubbs v. Mitchell

114 N.E.2d 158, 65 Ohio Law. Abs. 204, 1952 Ohio App. LEXIS 929
Ohio Court of Appeals·Decided March 13, 1952·No. No. 4626·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

OPINION

By MILLER, J.

This is a law and fact appeal from the judgment of the Common Pleas Court denying the appellants an injunction against the enforcement of Regulation No. 7 issued by the Board of Health of Franklin County on February 27, 1951. governing the immunization of dogs against rabies. The pertinent parts of the Regulation under consideration are as follows:

[206] “Section 2. Immunization. Any person who keeps or harbors a dog, or dogs, within the limits of Franklin County, shall on or before June 1st, 1951, have such dog, or dogs, immunized against rabies and each twelve (12) months thereafter shall have such dog, or dogs, reimmunized. Provided that any method, other than that of re-immunization described above, approved by the Health Commissioner and authorized by the United States Department of agriculture and/or the State of Ohio Department of Agriculture, may be used. Provided further that dogs need not be immunized before reaching the age of three (3) months. And provided further that dogs entering this jurisdiction temporarily for dog shows, performances or exhibition purposes shall not be allowed out of the owner’s, keeper’s or handler’s control, unless properly immunized, and all dogs entering this jurisdiction for field trials or hunting purposes, or any other purpose shall be properly immunized and immunized dogs shall be accompanied by an immunization certificate accomplished by the veterinarian that has immunized the dog.
“Section 3. Records. All veterinarian immunizing or re-immunizing dogs against rabies shall keep a record of such immunization or re-immunization and shall without delay give to the owner or keeper of the dog immunized or reimmunized a certificate of immunization which shall include a number identifying the individual record, a complete description of the dog, place where dog is kept or harbored, name of owner, keeper or harborer of the dog and his or her address, date and type of immunization or re-immunization and such other pertinent information • as is needed, and the signature and address of the veterinarian. The veterinarian shall also without delay forward the information, required on the certificate described in this section, to the Health Commissioner of Franklin County, or to any agency authorized by the Board of Health to keep these records.
“Section 4. Fees. The certificates described in Section 3 shall be made on forms provided by the Health Commissioner or the agency authorized by the Board of Health to the veterinarian at a fee of 50c for each certificate. This fee shall be used to provide for the enforcement of this regulation.
“Section 6. Penalty. Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate any provision or provisions of this rule and regulation shall be liable to prosecution under §4414 GC, which provides as follows:
“ ‘Whoever violates any provision of this chapter or any order or regulation of the Board made in pursuance thereof, [207] or obstructs or interferes with the execution of such order, or willfully or illegally omits to obey such order, shall be fined not to exceed one hundred dollars or imprisoned for not to exceed ninety days, or both but no person shall be imprisoned under this section for a first offense, and the prosecution shall always be as and for a first offense, unless the affidavit upon which the prosecution is instituted contains the allegation •that the offense is a second or repeated offense.’ ”

The case is presented to this Court upon an agreed statement of facts, of which the following is applicable to the issues raised:

“1. Plaintiffs keep upon their premises dogs which are more than 3 months of age and have not been vaccinated against rabies; said dogs are kept confined within a kennel or otherwise under control; and included among said dogs, are many which are sent abroad by their owners into Franklin County to plaintiffs, either for boarding, grooming, breeding or similar temporary purposes. That such owners will not send their dogs into Franklin County for such purposes if the kennel owner is required to have the dog vaccinated against rabies.
“2. Regulation No. 7 requires among other things that by June 1, 1951, and each 12 months thereafter, all dogs, with certain exceptions, within its jurisdiction be vaccinated against rabies.
“3. Said Regulation No. 7 provides for the assessment of a 50c fee for the certificate of immunization issued to the dog owner or keeper who has his dog vaccinated in accordance with said Regulation; and provides further that said fee shall be turned over to the agency authorized by defendants to enforce the Regulation. The Columbus Humane Society has been designated by the defendants to enforcee said Regulation and has been receiving and accepting the fees paid thereunder.
“4. On several occasions legislative proposals have been introduced in the Ohio General Assembly to delegate authority to the respective boards of health to order compulsory vaccination of dogs against rabies. House Bill No. 433 of the 98th General Assembly is an example of such proposals and is annexed to and made a part of the Stipulation as Exhibit B.”

The first question presented is whether the Franklin County Board of Health has authority to provide by regulation for the vaccination of dogs against rabies and if so, are the exceptions provided for therein arbitrary and discriminatory? The plaintiffs urge that it does not possess such power, the same being limited by §5652-16 GC to declaring a quarantine. This section, in part, provides:

“Whenever in the judgment of any city or general health [208] district board of health * * * rabies shall be declared to be prevalent, such board of health * * * shall declare a quarantine of all dogs in such health district or part thereof.”

The general powers of boards of health are set forth in §1261-42 GC, which provides that,

“The Board of Health of a general health district may make such orders and regulations as it deems necessary * * * for the public health, the prevention or restriction of disease and the prevention, abatement or suppression of nuisances.”

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Stubbs v. Mitchell, 114 N.E.2d 158, 65 Ohio Law. Abs. 204, 1952 Ohio App. LEXIS 929 (Ohio Ct. App. 1952).

114 N.E.2d 158 (Stubbs v. Mitchell) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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