The PostalCam is offline
I have a new regular carrier
as of 2003.
It's rather simple, really. In August of 1998, a letter carrier somehow managed to discharge his pepper spray into my back yard through a five-and-half foot tall chain link fence, getting pepper spray all over one of my dogs.
During his interview with the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office deputies, he told them that he knew he was in no danger from my dogs, that he was tired of them barking at him, and that he'd planned to spray the fence line "to keep the dogs back", so the deputies arrested him on animal cruelty charges - Postal Service manuals EL-814 and A65 both contain references to the use of pepper spray on dogs, and it is clear that he wasn't following the rules.
The County Attorney then refused to prosecute the case, saying that pepper spray is "harmless." So the carrier sued the Sheriff's Office for $3,000,000, citing "false arrest." They settled out of court for somewhere between $10,000 and $25,000 - claiming that it was cheaper than winning the case in the long run.
As yet, I've received no apology from the United States Postal Service, the carrier, or the County Attorney's office. To date, I am not aware of any disciplinary action taken by the USPS. My notice to the USPS that I objected to the carrier walking across the front porch, and that he was to no longer do so, has apparently been ignored as well. Any time that I'm visibly home (i.e., my car is visible in the driveway) he follows the curb to the driveway, then approaches the mailbox from that direction. If there's no indicator that I'm home, he appears to go back to his old routine of crossing the yard from the neighbor's driveway, and continuing across the porch to the mailbox. (Video is here and here is a great picture of the carrier clearly entering the frame from the left, and not from the driveway.) I object to this mostly because I don't like the fact that he's only about twelve feet from the wall into the back yard when he crosses at that point, and I'd prefer him to stay as far from the back yard as possible.
My dog's not the only one that's been pepper-sprayed by a postal worker for no apparent reason. Searching the web generates a list of other cases (like this one), and there are other cases documented on Usenet.
You don't believe that pepper-spraying dogs that don't present a danger is a common event? Take a look at the December 1999 "Summit City Mailbag." This is a newsletter for Branch 116 of the National Association for Letter Carriers, based in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The cartoon shown on page four has a letter carrier on his knees, pepper-spraying a dog through a slot in the front door of a house, and laughing while he does it. So much for the advice that you should *always* keep your dog inside the house - they're not safe from the carrier there, either. Try a look at this article. The author tells several stories about dealing with dogs while working as a letter carrier - I honestly feel sorry for her for some of these, but then she goes on to tell how she pepper-sprayed a poodle through the mail slot.
I have several cameras around the house, but not all of them will be accessible to the public. Since the images are stored on a server that isn't in my house, I will be able to access them even if something should happen to the camera (such as being smashed by an angry letter carrier.)
Some questions that have never really been answered...
Q&A time. I've received a couple of questions:
Q: Are you nuts? If you take pepper spray away from the letter carriers, then they won't have any way to defend themselves from dogs! You'll increase the insurance costs, and jack up the price of mailing a letter!
A: I'm not proposing that letter carriers be forbidden to carry pepper spray. I'm simply observing that there's no accountability for its use at this time. If a carrier is attacked by a dog, they *should* use pepper spray, their satchel, a tire iron, whatever they need to defend themselves. But if the situation requires defense, then it also should require the reporting of that incident to the animal's owner, local law enforcement, or local animal control personnel. To me, there's simply no excuse for someone to be able to pepper spray an animal that is behind a fence and causing no clear and present danger.
Q: Why did you call the cops on the letter carrier? Why didn't you report it to the Postal Service, and let them deal with it?
A: I *did* report it to the Postal Service. I spoke to the route supervisor less than an hour after the incident. Two weeks passed, and nothing happened. So I called the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office "Project Pet Protect" and reported it. Three days later, after interviewing the carrier and several other people (including myself) they arrested the carrier.
Q: Why a webcam?
A: I needed a way to check on things from any of the various locations at which I work. I made it public simply because I believe that this kind of thing happens far too often to allow the Postal Service to continue to ignore it.
Q: I think my local letter carrier pepper-sprayed my dog, too! What should I do?
A: First, don't bother contacting the Postal Service directly until after you've contacted your local law enforcement, as well as your local Humane Society representatives. In my experience, the only thing that the Postal Service will do is to take your complaint and bury it somewhere. I certainly didn't see any results from contacting the Postal Service, while I did see results from law enforcement. Second, preserve any evidence that you have that indicates pepper spray was used on your pet. If you've tried to clean up, keep any rags, paper towels, et cetera in sealed plastic bags. If there are oily stains in the dirt, or on wooden sections of fence, remove a sample and put it in a baggie to preserve it.
I'll be adding more to this page as time goes on.
United States Postal Service manual EL-814 states:
D. Animals and Insects
You are not required to deliver mail in any instances where you are
threatened by an animal. Use extra care in making deliveries when dogs or
other animals are loose on your route. Prepare From 1778, Dog Warning Card,
and place it in the letter case whenever you observe an animal that may
interfere with the delivery of the mail. In addition, report any such
interference to your supervisor so that the customer may be notified that
the animal must be restrained. Follow these guidelines:
+ Neither antagonize nor attempt to pet dogs. If a dog rushes toward you
or takes you by surprise, do not run. Retreat very slowly, facing the
dog. Keep your mail satchel between you and the dog as a first line of
defense.
+ Use dog repellent spray only if you are attacked. Spray it directly at
the dog's nostrils. Do not use dog repellent indiscriminately or when
there is a danger of spraying children or adults.
Instructions to Postal Employees.
This repellent is to be used on any dog that attacks. It does NOT replace
the policy of non-delivery of mail where there is a dog menace! Collection
and delivery service personnel are to report the name and address of the
customer where such a menace occurs to the postmaster or authorized
supervisor who must immediately telephone the customer and request that the
animal be confined during the usual delivery hours in the neighborhood. The
postmaster must further inform the customer that until this is done (1) no
deliveries will be made, and (2) service will be restored upon assurance
that the animal will be confined. Personnel are not to use the repellent
where there is a danger of spraying children or adults. Indiscriminate use
of the repellent will not be tolerated-personnel so observed are subject to
disciplinary action. Be alert for the sneak dog attack.
