Two people at the center of attention during the Licking County Commissioners’ first meeting of the year were a burly guy in a green-and-tan uniform and a wisp of a young girl whose name is on a law that will help him do his job better.
That includes saving lives.
The man is Licking County Chief Dog Warden Larry Williams – named warden of the year in 2025 by the Ohio County Dog Wardens Association – who was a key resource for state Rep. Kevin Miller, R-Newark, and two of his legislative colleagues as they crafted a bill to better address dangerous and vicious dogs. Miller, a former Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper, said he called Williams at all hours of the day and night for details that would help with the bill.
The girl is Avery Russell, 12, of Blacklick, in eastern Franklin County, who was brutally attacked by two dogs and lived to tell about it. And did she ever. She told her story of pain, multiple surgeries and survival to news reporters, state lawmakers and the governor – and other survivors of such attacks…