DogsBite Blog ::

dog bite statistics

Wednesday, April 1, 2009


2009 Dog Bite Fatality: 7-Month Old Boy Killed by Grandmother's Pit Bulls

Grandmother Named
UPDATE 04/01/09: The grandmother has been identified as the toddler's 58-year old great-grandmother, Irma Barrera.1 The two dogs have been identified as Cane and Wrinkle (both male and unaltered). Barrera said she placed the baby on her bed, then went into the kitchen to get a bottle for the child. That's when the pit bulls broke through the baby gate and attacked the baby. Barrera said she tried to stab the dogs with a knife to get them to release the baby.

03/31/09: Victim: Izaiah Gregory Cox
The victim has been identified as Izaiah Gregory Cox. Police said the incident started in the kitchen area, when the grandmother was warming a bottle for the boy. When she turned around, she saw her two pit bulls attacking him. A separate article said the dogs "broke down the baby-gate" to reach the child. The grandmother grabbed a knife and fought the dogs off long enough to place him into a crib. Then the dogs turned on her.

When EMS crews arrived at the Ruiz street house, they had to climb through a side window to get to the toddler, who later died at University Hospital. The dogs were shot to death by arriving police officers in the backyard, and their bodies were later taken away by animal control to be tested for rabies. The grandmother was also injured in the attack; she is still recovering at the hospital. It's still unclear if anyone at the home will face any charges.

Izaiah Cox Guest Book
Please see Izaiah Cox's obituary and guest book.

Related ZUPF video

03/31/09: Toddler Killed Under Grandmother's Watch
San Antonio, TX - In a developing story, a 7-month-old boy was attacked and killed by two pit bulls when the boy’s grandmother left the baby alone with her two dogs while she warmed a bottle. In the 3-year period of 2006-2008, DogsBite.org recorded 88 fatal dog attacks. 14% (12) of the fatal attacks involved a "watcher," a person such as a grandparent or babysitter watching the child between the ages of 0-4. Of these attacks, 75% (9) involved a grandparent type.
These occurrences are too frequent to ignore.
According to San Antonio Police Department Chief William McManus, emergency responders arrived on the scene of the dog attack, but couldn’t get past the two dogs (See: Omaha firefighters). Several minutes later, police arrived and shot the two dogs in order to enter the house to treat the victims. The baby was taken to a hospital with "major bite wounds all over his body" and died shortly thereafter. The dogs also attacked their owner, the grandmother.


1107 Ruiz, the scene of the fatal pit bull attack. View slide show.

Relatives said the grandmother frequently baby-sits her grandson, but said that when the baby is around, the dogs are usually outside, in a small, fenced-in yard. The dogs were kind to the grandmother, relatives said, but were aggressive toward others. One relative said the dogs bit her 8-year-old niece in the face once, and added she thought the dogs should have been put down then. A sign on the front gate warns pedestrians on the street to beware of the dogs.

Neighbors were unsurprised by the attack. "Are those dogs dangerous? You better believe it," said neighbor Larry Salazar, who gathered with several others after they heard the shots fired. Ramon Sanchez, whose grandmother lives next-door to where the attack took place, said the two dogs were at least 120 pounds each and were vicious. "Not even the mailman gets by that gate," Sanchez said. "I’m not surprised by the attack; I’m surprised that it took this long."

It is not known whether or not the boy’s grandmother will face charges in connection with the attack. A police investigation is under way.

1The grandmother was originally identified as Irma Garcia.

Related articles:
10/15/10: Grandmother Charged in Fatal Pit Bull Mauling Dies Before Trial
02/10/09: UK Toddler Killed by Family Dogs Under Grandmother's Watch
12/03/08: 2008 Fatality: 2-Year Old Boy Killed in Clark County, Nevada
10/31/08: Omaha Firefighters Receive Dangerous Pit Bull Training
09/18/08: 2008 Fatality: Pit Bulls Fatally Maul 4-Month Old in Las Vegas

Labels: , , , , , ,


posted by   |  permalink  |  15 comments  | email  |icon subscribe  |icon comment rss 
« View Older Posts      View Newer Posts »

15 comments:

Anonymous Anonymous  |  3/31/2009 5:56 PM  |  Flag  
None dare call it manslaughter!

Anonymous Anonymous  |  3/31/2009 6:01 PM  |  Flag  
Again, authorities allowed a pit bull crazy to keep dangerous dogs and terrorize everyone around her.

Again the pit bull breeders and pit bull fighters and fanatics defend these defective dogs.

Anonymous Anonymous  |  3/31/2009 6:11 PM  |  Flag  
Remember that San Antonio is NO KILL country.

The place where animal control got dominated by a bunch of No Kill clowns protecting pit bulls and dangerous dogs, refusing to pick up strays, refusing to deal with people who have dangerous dogs

San Antonio animal control needs to be fired and replaced!

Anonymous MamaDog  |  3/31/2009 11:30 PM  |  Flag  
The San Antonio/Bexar County pit bull problem is truly an abomination. Animal control should be fired, replaced and SUED!

Anonymous Anonymous  |  4/01/2009 4:35 AM  |  Flag  
Broke down the baby gate to get the baby and kept mauling while Grannie Dearest stabbed them...

Time to change the name from "Nanny Dog" to "Coffin Dog"!

Did the DA in this county ever charge the Pit owner from the Denise Rocha case under Lillian's Law?

Anonymous Anonymous  |  4/01/2009 6:07 AM  |  Flag  
I would tend to agree that with these dogs previous history and contact with animal control, ought some attorney bring an action for negligence. Until these jurisdictions feel the pain of $ damages awarded by a jury, the city councils and county boards will always defer to the "animal control types". Of all the people in the world, these "types" have got to realize pit bulls are different. My god, are you kidding me. Every city in this great country has a pit bull problem. From LA to NY. FRom Grand Forks to San Antonio. Maybe the feds should step in, similar to what England did in 1991.

The damage pit bulls inflict is unimaginable.

Anonymous Felony  |  4/01/2009 12:07 PM  |  Flag  
I will call it DEPRAVED INDIFFERENCE!

http://definitions.uslegal.com/d/depraved-indifference/
To constitute depraved indifference, the defendant's conduct must be 'so wanton, so deficient in a moral sense of concern, so lacking in regard for the life or lives of others, and so blameworthy as to warrant the same criminal liability as that which the law imposes upon a person who intentionally causes a crime. Depraved indifference focuses on the risk created by the defendant’s conduct, not the injuries actually resulting.

These parents whose children are killed as a result of being exposed to a family dog who has shown aggression previously, should be charged with MURDER.

Anonymous Anonymous  |  4/01/2009 7:06 PM  |  Flag  
Grandma has pit bulls that scare the heck out of the neighbors. She's got a sign hanging on her the fence that reads "Warning: Security Dog." At least one of the dogs had a bite record as well. Now grandma has a dead grandchild. She knew perfectly well how dangerous her dogs were...

This is NOT stupidity; this is DENIAL.

I wonder what she told the parents? "Your son will be just fine around my two pit bulls -- they might, however, "lick the child to death." The DENIAL thanks goes out to the pit bull community for promoting their dogs as "wiggle butts."

Anonymous Anonymous  |  4/02/2009 2:56 AM  |  Flag  
"Don't worry son, these dogs were used as Nanny Dogs when they weren't in the pit killing Bulls, Bears and other Pitbulls"...

Anonymous Anonymous  |  4/04/2009 3:45 AM  |  Flag  
The Texas Anti-BSL law and hindsight approach to attacks has failed. Its is truly the Pit Bull mauling capital of the world!

Anonymous Anonymous  |  4/04/2009 1:29 PM  |  Flag  
It takes a first or second attack to declare a dog "vicious" in Texas. So I guess after the 1st victim is dead by the pit bull, or terribly mauled, THEN these laws would kick in?

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/Baby_killed_by_dogs_mourned.html

On Friday, Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San Antonio, and his staff in Austin prepared to tout a bill that would crack down on “vicious” dogs, or dogs in enclosed areas that are capable of causing serious injury or death.

...The new bill does not distinguish between breeds and would levy restrictions against owners of vicious dogs, including a requirement that they maintain at least $100,000 in liability insurance.

Hindsight laws by definition only happen AFTER a victim has been created.

Anonymous Anonymous  |  4/06/2009 5:19 AM  |  Flag  
The 16th Century Hindsight Approach has failed!

Anonymous Anonymous  |  4/08/2009 4:22 AM  |  Flag  
This was the 18th DBRF in Texas in the past 3.25 years.

Of the 18 deaths, pitbulls account for 14 and Rottweilers 3.

Together the two breeds account for an obscene 17 of 18 DBRFs!

At some point legal concepts like "Forethought of Malice" need to come into play.

Anonymous Trigger  |  1/12/2010 12:15 PM  |  Flag  
UPDATE, January 12, 2010:

Prosecutors in San Antonio say a woman facing trial over the 2009 dog mauling death of her 7-year-old grandson has died of apparent natural causes. Irma Barrera was 59. Barrera was to have been in court Monday on charges of injury to a child. The San Antonio Express-News reports prosecutors moved to drop the case after learning that Barrera died Dec. 6. Barrera was injured and her grandson, Izaiah Gregory Cox, died following the March 31 attacks blamed on her two dogs at her home. Barrera was indicted in August after prosecutors determined that another grandchild, several years ago, had been injured by the dogs. Police shot and killed the two dogs, in the woman's yard, while responding to the March attack.

http://www.caller.com/news/2010/jan/12/s-woman-who-faced-trial-over-grandsons-fatal-dog-m/?print=1

Blogger Unknown  |  6/18/2012 11:55 PM  |  Flag  
It makes me sick that something like this happens. I do not understand why a 58 year old woman would own two unaltered male pits. These dogs are dangerous and need an experienced strong pack leader type with a calm assertive involved owner.
These dogs need this. This woman had no business owning these dogs period.
Pit bull owner ship should be regulated.

Post a Comment »

archives: