478 LAWS OF MARYLAND. [CH. 255

the complainant. The decision of the Court shall be final and
conclusive upon the parties.

Any person owning or harboring such dog who shall fail to
comply with any order of the justice of the peace or Circuit
Court, as the case may be, shall be punished by a fine of not
more than Ten Dollars ($10. 00) or by imprisonment for not
more than thirty days or both. Provided, however, that this
section shall not apply to dogs kept at a duly established and
operated shelter or public pound.

256P. TREBLE DAMAGES AND AUTHORITY TO KILL Vicious
DOG. If a dog which the justice of the peace or, upon review,
a Circuit Court shall have ordered to be restrained shall
wound any person, or shall wound or kill any livestock or
poultry, the owner or keeper of such dog shall be liable in tort
to the person injured thereby in treble the amount of dam-
ages sustained by him; and it shall be the duty of any police
officer or Warden finding such dog outside the enclosure of
its owner or keeper and not under his immediate care to use
diligence to apprehend and destroy such dog in the most
humane manner possible under the circumstances.

256Q. WRONGFUL KILLING, ENTICING OR HARBORING. Who-
soever attempts to administer or places where it is accessible
to dogs any poison, ground glass or potions of a deadly
nature shall be guilty of a crime punishable, on conviction,
by a fine not to exceed the sum of Five Hundred Dollars
($500. 00) or three months in prison or shall be both fined and
imprisoned in the discretion of the Court. Whoever wrong-
fully entices, carries away, maims, disposes of, or kills a dog
shall be liable in tort for its full value as an animal and in
addition thereto as a valued companion to its owner.

256R. OTHER UNLAWFUL ACTS CONCERNING DOGS. The
following shall be deemed unlawful acts and constitute mis-
demeanors and upon conviction thereof before a justice of the
peace or County Court shall be punished by a fine of not more
than Fifty Dollars ($50. 00) or by imprisonment in the County
Jail for not more than thirty days, or by fine and imprisonment
in the discretion of the Court. It shall be the duty of the
State's Attorney with the assistance of the sheriff, his deputies
and the duly appointed Wardens of the County to prosecute
all such cases that come to their attention; the compensation
to any Warden for each conviction under this Section on any
summons or warrant served by him shall be one-half of the fine
imposed, but in no case not more than Ten Dollars ($10. 00)
to be paid from the Fines Fund.