REGINA – Josie Lukovszki admits she has not always followed the animal control bylaws to a tee. She has had a few run-ins with enforcement officers and was fined last year for not getting her basset hound licensed.
After she licensed her dog, Lukovszki thought the situation was cleared up. However on Tuesday evening, two police cars and three officers showed up at her home.
“They (the kids) all came rushing into the bedroom and said ‘mom the police are here for you,’” said Lukovszki. “I said ‘I’m not going to get arrested or anything. It’s ok.’ And the officer said, ‘actually yes. You’re being placed under arrest.’”
Lukovszki says she was initially told the outstanding warrant was due to a noise violation. However, she says officers later clarified saying she was wanted in relation to a failing to obtain an annual dog license.
“They did what they could to try and straighten the situation out quickly. But it was very convoluted” she said.
Without getting into specifics of this case, the Regina Police Service says Lukovszki’s story is a reminder to take city bylaws seriously.
“Someone is given a citation of some sort. Time goes by to pay a fine or attend court. They forget, just don’t have the means to pay and aren’t sure what to do,” said Inspector Darcy Koch. “That may result in a warrant for their arrest under that bylaw. It doesn’t happen often.”
The city says a summons to appear in court was delivered to her personally but Lukovszki refutes that claim.
There are 1,700 outstanding warrants in Regina but a small number of those are bylaw related.
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