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Advocates for the blind protest

They came to support a Hill 'n Dale man whose guide dog was attacked by another dog.

BROOKSVILLE - The plight of Hill 'n Dale resident David Bearden and his guide dog, Isaac, brought about 25 advocates for the blind from across the state to the Hernando County Government Center on Tuesday to demand justice.

Since Isaac was brutally attacked by another dog early in the summer, Bearden has made the rounds of county government, the Sheriff's Office and the State Attorney's Office, seeking to have a state law enforced in his case.

The law makes anyone who shows "reckless disregard" that results in injury to a guide dog guilty of a misdemeanor and liable for restitution.

Though disappointed by Tuesday's response from county commissioners, who said the matter was criminal and not covered by a local dangerous dog ordinance, advocates, Bearden among them, claimed a recent victory: the State Attorney's Office, they said, had recently reopened the case.

Problem is, the State Attorney's Office says the case was never closed.

Pete Magrino, the office's division supervisor, said he had been in contact with the Sheriff's Office by telephone regarding the attack on Isaac, but he did not have the paperwork needed to begin an investigation until July 3.

Currently, the "matter is under investigation and review," Magrino said, and a final decision could come in a few weeks.

The matter to be decided in the case rests on whether Lucille Christman, owner of the dog that attacked Isaac, should have known her animal was a threat to other dogs and taken better precautions. That is the negligence standard behind "malicious disregard" in the state law.

Bearden, 46, had hoped commissioners would aid him by pressing for a criminal finding in the case or by vowing to revamp their local ordinance. Commissioners instead promised to look at local ordinances and write state legislators regarding the seriousness of the issue.

Bearden, a lounge singer, found the response tepid at best.

"They just blew me off," he said. "They wanted to pacify me."

- Will Van Sant covers Hernando County government and can be reached at 754-6127. Send e-mail to vansant@sptimes.com