Charles Jones is backing off his threat to ban pit bulls in the area, but the Douglas County commissioner isn’t about to drop his legislative attack on dangerous dogs and their owners.

“I increasingly believe that a breed-specific ordinance won’t work,” Jones said this week. “My hope would be that a one-size-fits-all approach would be good … to see if we can stop some kid from being killed before it happens.”

Jones is leading a pack of government officials in search of tighter restrictions on vicious dogs and their owners. In November, Jones initially threatened to push for a ban on pit bulls after two such canines jumped a fence in east Lawrence and attacked and killed a Labrador retriever in its back yard.

While current laws focus on keeping a dog under the control of its owner, or — once a dog is deemed vicious — keeping it confined in a pen, Jones said he would rather attack the problem at its source.

He suggests imposing a ban on dogs bred, raised and owned to be fighters.

“I’m more concerned about dogs raised for fighting purposes — mean dogs,” he said. “I’m more concerned about outlaw dogs and their outlaw owners, rather than some guy with a dog that just runs off a leash.”

Lawrence City Commissioner Mike Rundle said he would support an “effective and enforceable” method to address fighting dogs.

Jim Henry, a fellow city commissioner, suggested hitting owners of vicious or fighting dogs where it hurts: with fines of $100,000 instead of $1,000.

“You need to hold the owner accountable,” Henry said.

Bob Johnson, chairman of the County Commission, weighed in on the discussion by offering an even more ominous deterrent for owners — having their dogs humanely destroyed.

“Maybe we should expand the ‘put-down’ portion of the law,” he said.