Dog bite expert witness opinion & testimony

     The truthfulness of statements made by either the plaintiff or defendant in civil matters involving dog bite litigation, or in criminal cases involving police dog handlers, at times may need to be challenged. One way to accomplish this is to provide the trier-of-fact with dog expert opinion and testimony regarding how a dog should have behaved, or likely behaved, given the circumstances under consideration. Thus, reconstruction of the events using expert opinion and testimony in animal behavior may be helpful. If expert opinion from the animal behaviorist conflicts with the accounts given by the plaintiff or defendant, or dog handler, then the veracity of testimony of that person may be called into question.

     Numerous examples can be given. For example, Was the dog capable of jumping a 6 foot cinderblock wall?; Was a police dog capable of crawling underneath a vehicle 6 inches off the ground?; Was a scent detector dog capable of detecting heroin in a coffee container in the engine compartment of a car?; Was the dog suspected of inflicting bite injury to the plaintiff, capable of doing this given its medical condition, temperament, past behavioral history and the circumstances surrounding the incident?

     Dog behavior expert opinion and testimony can address questions like the above through behavioral reconstruction, or by using scientific literature to educate the trier-of-fact regarding the capabilities and limitations of canine behavior.