RESEDA : Owner of Petting Zoo Files Claim

The owner of a petting zoo and pony ride in Reseda has filed a claim for damages of $750,000 against the city of Los Angeles alleging that she was arrested without probable cause and her ponies seized illegally by city animal regulation officers.

The claim is the second legal action Linda Menary has taken against the city in recent months. She recently sued the city to prevent officials from shutting down her Tampa Avenue business, called The Farm, after she tried and failed to get a land-use permit to keep it open.

Mike Qualls, spokesman for City Atty. Jim Hahn, said his department had not had time to review the new claim and had no comment.

The claim grew out of a March 2 raid on property Menary owns on Chatsworth Street in Chatsworth, during which Menary was arrested and 12 of her ponies confiscated.

Animal Regulation officials conducted the raid after passersby reported that some of the animals Menary was keeping there were being neglected and needed their hoofs trimmed.

Menary accused the city of harassing her because of her lawsuit. Her animals were turned over to the West Valley Animal Shelter, where they were still being kept this week.

Menary’s claim states that she suffered emotional damages from the incident.