7 Real Dog Bite Cases Explored | PersonalInjuryLawyer.com

The number of people that are injured in dog bite cases appears to be on the rise. According to a recent survey by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, there are more than 74.8 million dogs in the United States. Nearly 1,000 Americans are treated in emergency rooms every day as a result of a dog bite. It is estimated that there have been over 30 fatal dog attacks in the last few years and over half of them in which the children were the victim. The term “canine homicide” refers to the death of an individual caused by a dog. Even though these types of dog bite cases are extremely rare, it is important to closely examine them to find out what led to the incident and determine if it could have been avoided.

Serious and Fatal Cases Involving Dogs

April 14, 2010—A seven-day old infant, Thomas Carter, Jr. was killed by the family dog while his 16-year old mother was asleep with the newborn on the bed. Authorities in New Port Richey, Florida, said the baby had more than 50 puncture wounds on his body and did not understand how the mother slept through the attack. It was well known that Sidon, the Pit Bull routinely slept in the bedroom with the baby and his parents. A former neighbor of the dog, who had different owners at the time, reported that Sidon had previously attacked both other pets and people. After Sidon mauled baby Thomas, he got outside where he attacked another dog. Sidon was later euthanized.
February 24, 2010—A five-day old infant who was placed in a bassinet was killed in Conyers, Georgia. According to the published news report, the mother reportedly heard the baby crying. Upon entering the baby’s room, she found the family dog on top of the bassinet. This was a preventable and tragic accident for the family. They lost both their baby girl and their pet Pit Bull.
February 18, 2010—Police in Independence, Minnesota reported that an eleven-day old boy died after he was bitten by a Siberian husky dog while left alone in his car seat on the bed. The dog was euthanized two weeks after the baby was killed.
February 12, 2010—In Terry, Mississippi, a six-year old girl walked to a friend’s house and upon returning home, she was mauled to death by a neighboring Pit Bull. The dog was among several kept on property across the street from Anastasia Bingham’s home. It was reported that the man who kept the dogs on his land was not the owner, but the family had called the Sheriff’s Department in the past about the dogs.
January 17, 2009—A three-year old Ft. Worth Texas girl was found dead after being attacked and killed by her neighbor’s Rottweiler dog. Brooklynn Milburn climbed through a hole in the fence of the backyard and into an enclosure where the dog was kept. The dog’s owner said it was the first time her pet had ever hurt anyone.
September 8, 2008—A 71-year old woman, Huong Le, was attacked by two Pit Bulls after walking a child to the bus stop. As she went back to her home, the dogs got between her and the porch and began a tag-team attack. Both of her ears were ripped from her head, her jaw was broken, and her right arm and wrist crushed beyond repair. Her scalp was covered with staples and her legs had raw wounds that could not be closed due to fear of infection being trapped inside. When King County deputies arrived in the SeaTac neighborhood, they saw the dogs on top of Le and immediately shot and killed them. Travis Cunningham had owned the dogs for three years and they had gotten loose on previous occasions. The dogs were kept in a fenced enclosure in the front yard, but there were noticeable gaps in the fencing.
July 12, 2007—Five-year old Tiffany Pauley wandered away from her Carrollton, Georgia home as her mother and siblings slept. She walked about 200 yards up the street into an unfenced yard where five dogs were kept. Three of them were chained, including a ten-year old Rottweiler that attacked and killer her. The mother was later charged with involuntary manslaughter.

Determining Liability

Determining who is liable in dog bite cases will depend upon a variety of factors including:

The geographic location of the attack as the dog bite laws vary in each state
Whether the owner knew of should have known that the dog had a propensity for violence
The owner was negligent in restraining their dog or failed to shield others from the dog

Strict liability laws may hold the dog owner liable even if they knew the dog was dangerous and took precautions to protect the public from the dog.

How a Lawyer Can Help

If you or someone you love has been seriously or fatally injured in a dog bite case, you have the right to recover damages. You can seek compensation for medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, property damage and wrongful death. Consulting with a personal injury attorney is a wise course of action.

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