Licking County Chief Dog Warden Larry Williams and Avery Russell, 12, of Blacklick, were honored Thursday, Jan. 8, at the Licking County Administration Building in Newark, Ohio, after Gov. Mike DeWine signed a state law aimed at strengthening Ohio’s response to dangerous and vicious dogs.
Williams, named warden of the year in 2025 by the Ohio County Dog Wardens Association, was recognized alongside Russell as lawmakers marked the law’s upcoming start date. Avery’s Law is set to take effect March 18.
The ceremony included Licking County Commissioners Rick Black, Tim Bubb and Duane Flowers, along with Rep. Kevin Miller, R-Newark, and Rep. Meredith Lawson-Rowe, D-Reynoldsburg, who worked on the bill. Rep. Cecil Thomas, D-Cincinnati, also contributed to the bipartisan effort but did not attend the event.
Miller, a former Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper, told reporters he called Williams “at all hours of the day and night” for details he said helped shape the measure. Lawson-Rowe said the city law director suggested she pursue legislation after the attack on Avery in June 2024 at a Reynoldsburg home.
Lawson-Rowe said her “one non-negotiable” requirement was that the bill carry Avery’s name. She referred to Russell as “my hero, Avery Russell,” and said that in the months after the attack, Avery would ask her why it happened.
Avery’s mother, Drew Russell, described the day of the attack as life-changing and said she shifted her focus largely to Avery’s recovery. Drew Russell said she also has heard suggestions that she was exploiting her child in a campaign for change, and she said, “No.” Drew Russell added, “She wants to do this” with the goal of protecting other children.
She said she told Avery, “God has a plan for you, and he only gives his toughest battles to the strongest people.” On Jan. 8, Drew Russell and Avery stood holding bouquets of roses during the recognition event.
The law revised Ohio’s dog-attack framework, including changes that local dog wardens will carry into enforcement once the measure takes effect. The provisions described in the Associated Press report include imposing criminal penalties on a dog owner if he or she negligently fails to keep a dog from committing an unprovoked attack, giving the local dog warden authority to seize a dog immediately after such an attack, and revising investigation and enforcement requirements when officials receive complaints indicating a possible violation of Ohio’s dog law.
Avery’s Law also provides protections for dogs defending themselves, their owners, or their property, and it mandates euthanization after due process if a dog kills or seriously injures a person.
The report said the push for the measure followed a March 2025 statewide investigation by news organizations including The Cincinnati Enquirer, Columbus Dispatch, Akron Beacon Journal and Canton Repository. That investigation reported that about 17,000 dog bites are reported each year to local public health agencies in Ohio, that many more go unreported, and that children are disproportionately represented in serious injuries and deaths, with pediatric hospitals across Ohio treating hundreds of children for dog bites each year.
The investigation also described disparities in enforcement, saying owners of vicious dogs pay relatively small fines and may face misdemeanor charges, and that felony charges are brought only in rare cases when there is a documented history of a dog’s aggressive behavior.