Charlie the Pit Bull Has 30 Days to Leave Lakewood

After a lengthy decision-making process, Lakewood officials ordered Charlie to be removed from the city. With Cleveland APL documents, the city determined that Charlie is a pit bull, a loose collection of dog breeds that have been banned from Lakewood for almost a decade.

Charlie has 30 days to leave the city.

Charlie was originally allowed in Lakewood as a puppy, but animal control reversed its stance after he got loose through a gate earlier this summer.

The decision comes months into a visible campaign against the city's anti-pit bull legislation (or "breed-specific legislation"), which bans dogs that have more than 50 percent pit bull DNA. In August, a large group of residents gathered outside City Hall to protest Lakewood's breed-specific legislation while Charlie's owner, Jennifer Scott, attended a hearing on her dog's fate.

Supporters of Charlie will be packing the house at the next Lakewood City Council meeting, Sept. 18.