Miska, Bellevue’s most persecuted tabby cat, gets her day in Pierce County court
Miska, Bellevue’s most persecuted tabby cat, has been missing for several months.
Her lawyers say they think it’s possible she’s back in the custody of animal control.
Maybe she’s on the lam.
Despite her absence, the 10-year-old tabby had her day in Pierce County Superior Court on Friday.
The hearing was part of a lawsuit Miska’s owner, Anna Danieli, filed last year that alleged Regional Animal Services of King County unfairly targeted the cat as a “vicious,” trespassing animal.” The case was filed in Pierce County to avoid a conflict of interest.
Judge Bryan Chushcoff granted part of a motion for summary judgment by Miska’s attorneys, which had to do with outdated city code about who has authority to hear animal control cases in Bellevue.
That’s significant for Miska, because her attorneys said she accounts for 37 of the 50 infractions involving cats that RASKC has filed in a 10-year period and has racked up thousands of dollars in fines while allegedly roaming her neighborhood. Bellevue is not a right-to-roam city for cats.
King County deputy prosecutor Amy Montgomery filed a motion last month that asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit.
It said in part: “Neighbors have made repeated complaints to RASKC regarding Miska’s tendencies to trespass on neighbors’ property. There have been other complaints of Miska killing small animals, including family rabbits and chickens.”
The motion alleged that Miska is a Savannah cat, “a crossbreed between a domesticated cat and an African Serval.”
It went on to say: “RASKC is mandated to investigate violations and take action if Miska continues to be found roaming in public. They cannot abandon their responsibilities and allow Miska to disregard prior orders.”
Jon Zimmerman, one of Miska’s attorneys, told reporters outside court: “I’ve never seen animal control target one particular cat so much.”
He called Friday’s hearing “a victory for citizens of Bellevue and particularly pet owners in Bellevue.”
Zimmerman said the judge ruled “that the King County Hearing Examiner lacks authority for Bellevue to hear these cases until such time as Bellevue properly gives the Hearing Examiner that authority.”
The Bellevue City Code says the King County Board of Appeals is where a case goes when someone contests a violation from RASKC. But that board stopped hearing such cases in 2016, and since then they’ve gone to the hearing examiner.
Judge Chushcoff said he was convinced interlocal agreements in place weren’t sufficient to change the Bellevue ordinance.
“That’s the kind or bureaucratic error that I suppose makes us all kind of crazy,” he said as he made his decision.
Jeffrey Possinger, another of the cat’s attorneys, told reporters: “The court ruled today that the City of Bellevue can no longer have animal control cases heard by the King County Hearing Examiner until the City of Bellevue Code is changed or some other thing is done so that it’s now appropriately entered in as a matter of law.”
He noted that “... the judge decided to set aside some of the decisions for a later date.”
Danieli’s lawsuit said she wants a Pierce County judge to void Miska’s violations and to keep RASKC from prosecuting Miska in front of the King County Hearing Examiner. It also asked that RASKC’s determination that Miska is “vicious” be voided, as well as any removal orders by the former or acting RASKC manager.
When he ran the agency, a former RASKC manager wanted the cat deported from King County and “pursued Miska like no other cat in Bellevue and King County” because the cat lived in his neighborhood, the lawsuit alleged.
Something like seven prosecutors have been assigned to the cat, and at one point Miska spent about six months in kitty jail, her attorneys said.
The lawsuit said RASKC trapped the cat and took her to its animal control facility, and that ultimately Danieli was able to bail her out when RASKC agreed to release the cat if Danieli paid kenneling fees.
Zimmerman told The News Tribune last year Miska was able to legally roam in Bellevue when she was born and that the law has since changed. He said it wouldn’t be fair to make her an indoor tabby.
“I think that this is somebody who has had the freedom to be outside for a long time,” he told The News Tribune.
Zimmerman told reporters Friday: “We’ll always keep fighting for Miska.”
He said he understands the tabby is “friendly with people,” that she likes particular foods, and that she “can be vocal.”
Danieli added briefly that Miska “loves children.”
“I miss her,” she said.
This story was originally published October 25, 2020 at 9:00 AM.
