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Posted on July 20, 2019 by Colleen Lynn

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2019 Dog Bite Fatality: Man Mauled to Death by Pack of Dogs in Southwest Memphis

Mario Moore, 40, was killed by a pack of dogs early Thursday morning in Memphis.

Pack of Dogs Kill Man
Memphis, TN - Late Friday, it was reported that a 40-year old man was killed by a pack of dogs near the intersection of Belle Haven and Meadowbrook in Memphis. The attack occurred Thursday about 2:00 am. He was transported in critical condition to Regional Medical Center, where he later died. A family member identified the victim as Mario Moore. His death by a "pack of dogs" comes two weeks after a 45-year old man died a similar death in Lake Placid, Florida.

Kevin Woods was driving nearby when he saw a pack of dogs that he thought were fighting. Then he realized they were attacking a person. "I seen about seven, eight dogs," Woods said. "I thought they were fighting with each other. Then I seen legs rolling around and I said, they're jumping on a dude." Woods started honking his horn and dogs backed off him. Arriving police found “multiple aggressive dogs” across the street. Memphis Animal Services took custody of five dogs.

In October 2018, eight years after 71-year old William Parker was killed by two pit bulls near downtown Memphis (about 9 miles away), a lawsuit victory was announced for his family. The court awarded Gardenia Parker's family $2.5 million dollars. The Parkers sued the apartment's management, Epstein Enterprises, and the owner, Longview Heights Partners, who knew or should have known these same pit bulls had attacked or threatened other people too.

Earlier this year, there was a string of fatal pack attacks, all involving female victims, ages 50-years and older. The January mauling deaths of Dianne Reves, 70, in Grenada County, Mississippi and Lana Bergman, also 70, near Joshua Tree, California. In February, Angela Johnson, 54, died of injuries sustained by a pack of pit bulls in mid December. Also in February, Bessie "Jill" Peterson, 88, was killed by a pack of loose dogs in rural Pall Mall, Tennessee.

On February 27, one day after Peterson's death, Johnnie Garner, 88, was killed by a pack of pit bulls in Lubbock, Texas. Despite all of these dogs having owners guilty of their "pack of dogs" being at large and killing a person, only Garner's death resulted in criminal charges. Just two days before Courtney White's six pit bulls killed Garner, he tried to turn them over to Lubbock Animal Services, but was told he needed to "make an appointment." The earliest time slot was March 1.

Packs of dogs killing people is typically a problem in developing countries, primarily India, where there is little governmental control of the massive stray dog population, estimated to be 30 million, and it is illegal to cull dogs. Technically, our definition of a pack of dogs is four or more dogs. When three dogs are included in this category, and the attack was inflicted off the owner's property, nearly 30% (8 of 28) of fatal dog attacks in the U.S. this year involve this preventable scenario.

When a "Pack of Dogs" Kill

Everyone knows, including the courts, that a "pack of dogs" at large can be dangerous. Every single fatal attack involving this scenario, when the owner of the dogs is known, should result in felony criminal charges. The legal standard of having to prove that the owner "knew or should have known" of the dogs' vicious propensities (due to a previous attack) should be abolished in "pack attack" cases. It is adequate that the "pack of dogs" was at large and killed a person.

(2/2) Multiple aggressive dogs were located across the street. Officers were advised that those dogs were responsible for the attack.
The victim was xported critical to ROH where he later died from his injuries.
M.A.S. recovered 5 dogs. This is an ongoing investigation.
— Memphis Police Dept (@MEM_PoliceDept) July 19, 2019

A commenter on the WREG Facebook post complains of longterm problems with these dogs.

Baseline reporting requirements:
Law enforcement departments across the United States should release consistent "baseline" information to the media and the public after each fatal dog mauling, including these items.

Posted on July 11, 2019 by Colleen Lynn

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2019 Dog Bite Fatality: Pit Bull Kills Owner in Uniontown: 'He Has a Hole in His Head and His Neck'

Homer Utterback, 52, died after his own dog brutally attacked him in Uniontown.

Dog Kills Owner
Uniontown, PA - A man is dead after his own dog brutally attacked him. Police identified the man as 52-year old Homer Utterback. Just before 1:00 am Thursday, Utterback's girlfriend heard something fall, police said. She got up to see what the noise was and found Utterback on the floor with the dog biting his neck. Police said by the time EMS arrived, Utterback was dead. Utterback's girlfriend told officers the dog was their pet for a decade and was Utterback's "best friend."

Broadcastify.com captures the Fayette County Fire and EMS feed. The attacking dog is basically identified as a pit bull on the feed. "Male, 50s, unresponsive and not breathing. He had a seizure and then his dog attacked him. Male's bleeding from the head. This is going to be a pit bull," states a man to the dispatcher. When the dispatcher calls EMS to the location, she states, "Patient had a seizure. As he was doing so, a pit bull attacked him. He has a hole in his head and his neck."

The brief WXPI article did not contain any dog breed information, nor did it need to. There have been a number of owner-directed fatal attacks inflicted by pit bulls in response to their owner suffering a seizure over the years -- as recently as last year. Of the 500 dog bite fatalities we have recorded since 2005, pit bulls have been implicated in every owner-directed fatal attack while the victim was actually, or purportedly, having a seizure, except for one case involving a rottweiler.

Owners killed by a pit bull during an alleged seizure include: Della Riley, 42-years old (Cleveland, Ohio, 2018); Jamie Owsley, 21-years old (Quincy, Illinois, 2017); Charles Hagerman, 44-years old (Chicago, Illinois, 2012); Tonia Parks, 39-years old (Rockford, Illinois, 2011); Kelli Chapman, 24-years old (Longville, Louisiana, 2008); Brandon Coleman, 25-years old (Morgantown, West Virginia, 2006); Lorinze Reddings, 42-years old (St. Louis, Missouri, 2005) and likely others.

Evening Updates

While we were trying to locate the victim's girlfriend on Facebook to capture images of the dog involved in the fatal attack of Homer Utterback, it appears WPXI was doing the same thing. We were able to confirm that a white pit bull named Petey -- AKA My Petey Pie -- seen on Wendy Baker's Facebook page, the victim's girlfriend, is the culprit. According to Facebook comments by Baker's daughter, the pit bull was a "rescue" and had "never attacked anybody until last night."

There were at least four other pit bulls in the home, all offspring of Petey, according to Baker's Facebook page. The dispatch audio feed also reflects a multi-dog household. "The dogs are on scene, but are locked in a separate room," the dispatcher relayed to en route EMS. When EMS arrived, Utterback was already dead. "There's a large laceration to the head and neck area. Nonresponsive," EMS states. It's unknown if the family will keep the "pack" of younger pit bulls.

2013 photos: A male rescue pit bull, named Petey, attacked and killed Homer Utterback.

2018 photo: The Utterback home had at least four more pit bulls, all offspring of Petey.

View the DogsBite.org Google State Map: Pennsylvania Fatal Pit Bull Attacks.

Posted on July 9, 2019 by Colleen Lynn

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2019 Dog Bite Fatality: Sleeping Infant Killed by Family Husky in Hall County, Georgia

Home where a sleeping infant was killed by a family dog in Hall County, Georgia.

Dog Believed to be Attacker
UPDATE 07/13/19: We have located photographs of the 2-year old husky that bit a 22-day old baby on the head an undetermined number of times, killing the infant. A pair of littermate puppies (twin in appearance) arrived at the family's home in January 2017. We already know that the pure white husky was not confiscated by police nor was one of the black-and-white littermates. So, the attacker is presumably the other littermate. The huskies belong to a woman living at the home.

Notably, the woman refers to the black-and-white huskies as "My Wolves." We presume this is a referral to the Game of Thrones TV series, which heavily featured "Direwolves" and caused an explosion of huskies being bred and sold. Much has been written about this explosion, as recently as May 2019. Abandoned huskies are now showing up en mass at shelters across the US and UK. As early as 2017, the star of Game of Thrones urged the public to stop buying huskies.

We have also removed the term "mix" from the breed. The "mix" term is frequently appended by shelter employees to all dogs entering the facility even when the dog appears to be purebred.

The twin, 2-year old husky littermates (male and female) and one has a different eye color.

07/10/19: Police Identify Infant
Sheriff's deputies in Hall County have released the identity of an infant fatally mauled by a family husky Tuesday in Gainesville. The attack occurred at about 2:00 pm at home in the 2900 block of Gillsville Highway. Ruth Flores, just 22-days old, was severely bitten in the head by one of her family's huskies. She was immediately taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center, where she later died. The infant was sleeping in a bedroom when the 2-year old husky attacked her.

Earlier today, CBS 46 posted footage of a reporter trying to speak to a person inside the infant's home. One can see three additional dogs in the front window of the home -- two huskies and a white dog with wavy hair. Deputies said when they arrived at the scene, they found the baby with serious trauma to her head. The dog bit the baby an undetermined number of times, deputies said. The attacking dog continues to be held in quarantine at Hall County Animal Services.

07/09/19: Infant Killed by Family Dog
Gainesville, GA - An infant has died after being attacked and seriously injured by a dog, Hall County Fire Services confirmed. Firefighters responded to a home in the 2900 block of Gillsville Highway after a report of a dog bite to a 22-day old infant girl. "The incident occurred inside the home, in a bedroom where the infant was resting, according to initial information gathered by deputies on the scene," Hall County Sheriff’s Office 1st Lt. Chris Dale stated in a news release.

The baby girl was transported to Northeast Georgia Medical Center, Hall County Fire Services Capt. Zach Brackett said. The infant died of her injuries at the hospital. Hall County Animal Control and Enforcement took custody of the animal, which belonged to the residents of the home, the Gainesville Times reports. Officials said the family dog involved is a husky-mix. The name of the baby girl has not been released. The City of Gainesville is about 40 miles northwest of Athens.

CBS 46 News reports the deadly attack occurred about 2:00 pm. The infant's mother was home when the family's 2-year old husky-mix bit the child on the head. CBS 46 also spoke to Hall County Sheriff’s Office 1st Lt. Chris Dale, who said there were "other dogs in crates" at the family's home on Gillsville Highway. No other children were in the home at the time of the attack, Dale said. Further comments by officials are currently being withheld due to HIPAA restrictions.

Breed-Specific Traits

In our multi-year report of dog bite fatalities -- U.S. Dog Bite Fatalities: Breeds of Dogs Involved, Age Groups and Other Factors Over a 13-Year Period (2005 to 2017) -- we pointed out a breed-specific trait pertaining to huskies. "Of the 13 fatal attacks inflicted by huskies, 62% (8 of 13) were infants ≤11 months old and 92% (12) were ages ≤5 years old. The single adult death, a 22-year old female victim, was a multi-breed attack involving a female husky and a male pit bull."

Our statement was also footnoted with the following: "In comparison with the other top-six killing dog breeds, only 15% (3 of 20) of German shepherd victims were infants ≤11 months old, 13% (6 of 45) of rottweiler victims, 10% (28 of 284) of pit bull victims, 7% (1 of 15) of American bulldog victims, 0% of mixed-breed victims, and 0% of mastiff/bullmastiff victims were infants." Very often in the cases of husky-inflicted infant deaths, the baby is sleeping when the dog attacks too.

CBS 46 footage shows two additional huskies in the home the day after the fatal mauling.

A sleeping infant was killed by a family dog described as a husky-mix in Gainesville, Georgia.

Posted on July 4, 2019 by Colleen Lynn

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2019 Dog Bite Fatality: Man Found Dead, Believed to be Killed by a Pack of Dogs in the Highway Park Community

Melvin Olds Jr., 45, was discovered dead after being mauled by a pack of dogs.

Preliminary Autopsy
UPDATE 07/05/19: The preliminary cause of death for Melvin Olds Jr., 45, is injuries suffered during a dog attack. More than 100 dog bites were found on his body. Independent investigations by the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office, the District 10 Medical Examiner and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) led to this determination. Olds was found in a wooded area behind a home on Cochran Drive in Highway Park shortly before noon on July 4.

Six dogs have been captured after setting up traps and patrolling the area. "Their bite size matches with the wounds on Olds’ body, but that alone is not enough to say for sure that they were the animals involved," states a release from the sheriff's office. DNA from the dogs will also be collected to see if it matches DNA on the wounds. Sheriff Paul Blackman cautions residents to be watchful for loose dogs, as it will take time to determined if they captured the right dogs.

WFLA spoke with the victim's family members. They said Olds took a shortcut through a wooded path and never came back that day. Olds was a father of five and a grandfather. His fiancé, Jannell Ward, said she had seen a pack of dogs lingering in the neighborhood. They had caused problems in the past too, including killing her chihuahua at some point. WFLA reports the six dogs are reportedly strays and pit bull-mixes. Deputies are working to confirm ownership of the dogs.

Please help Melvin's family by donating to his GoFundMe campaign for funeral costs.

07/04/19: Man Found Dead
Lake Placid, FL - Shortly before noon on the Fourth of July, a man was found dead in a wooded area behind a home in the southeastern portion of Highway Park. The Highlands County Sheriff's Office identified the man as 45-year old Melvin Olds Jr. "The investigation has revealed injuries indicative of an animal attack," states the release from the sheriff's office. The medical examiner responded to the scene and could find "no other injuries other than those inflicted by the animals."

A pack of dogs was seen in the area shortly after his body was discovered, states the release. Authorities believe this pack of dogs killed the man. An autopsy will be conducted to determine the official cause of death. Highlands County Animal Services and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) are setting up traps to capture the roaming dogs. The number of dogs in the pack was not released by officials, nor was the block location of the deadly attack.

Highlands County Sheriff's Office - (July 4, 2019) The Highlands County Sheriff's Office is investigating a suspicious death in Lake Placid.
Shortly before noon today, dispatch was notified about a man who appeared to be deceased in a wooded area behind a residence is the southeastern portion of the Highway Park area. The man has been identified as 45-year-old Melvin Olds Jr.
The investigation has revealed injuries indicative of an animal attack, believed to be from a pack of dogs. The medical examiner responded to the scene and could find no injuries other than those inflicted by the animals, but an autopsy will be needed to determine an official cause of death.
A pack of dogs was seen in the area shortly after the body was discovered. Animal Services as well FWC units are in the area setting traps. If any one in the area sees a pack of dogs or any dog that is aggressive, please call 863-402-7200.

In addition to WFLA reporting the attacking dogs were pit bull-mixes, a commenter on the July 5 Highlands County Sheriff's Office Facebook post, who is also a pit bull owner, states the same thing. Jessica Perkinson-Davise of Lake Placid states, "They we're pits. I saw ALL of them the day before. But I also have a pit that is the most gentle dog in the world!!!" Jessica also states in this July 5 thread, "I saw the dogs that did this. They attacked 2 other men the day before."

Comments from a pit bull owner on the Highlands County Sheriff's Office Facebook post.

The unincorporated community of Highway Park is just south of the town of Lake Placid.