A Dog The County Calls Dangerous
Md. Code, Crim. Law § 10-619 — potentially dangerous by written notice, dangerous after that, and a fine not exceeding $2,500
Potentially dangerous. A county or municipal unit may determine that a dog is potentially dangerous if it finds the dog bit a person on public or private property, killed or severely injured a domestic animal off the owner's property, or attacked without provocation, and notifies the owner in writing of the reasons.
Dangerous. A dangerous dog is one that without provocation killed or severely injured a person, or one already found potentially dangerous that then bites a person, kills or severely injures a domestic animal off the owner's property, or attacks without provocation. Severe injury means broken bones or disfiguring lacerations requiring multiple sutures or cosmetic surgery.
What the owner may not do. The owner may not leave a dangerous dog unattended on the owner's property unless it is confined indoors, in a securely enclosed and locked pen, or in another structure designed to restrain it; or let it leave the property unless leashed and muzzled, or otherwise securely restrained and muzzled.
Selling or giving it away. The owner of a dangerous or potentially dangerous dog who sells or gives it to another notifies in writing the authority that made the determination of the new owner's name and address, and the new owner of the dog's behavior.
The penalty. A person who violates the section is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to a fine not exceeding $2,500.
Cities and counties often add their own dangerous dog rules on top of these, and those are not on this page. What a particular designation means for a particular dog is a question for a licensed Maryland attorney.
Sources for this section (1)
- Md. Code, Crim. Law § 10-619 — Dangerous dogs
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Maryland attorney.