Jordyn Arndt, 4-years old, was taken off life support Tuesday and died.
Trial Reset Again
UPDATE 08/26/14: For the second time, the criminal trial date for Jena Marie Wright, 26-years old, has been reset. Wright is charged with child endangerment causing death and neglect after her pit bull viciously attacked a little girl who was under her care. Jordyn Arndt, 4-years old, was airlifted to a hospital, but did not survive her injuries. She died on April 23, 2013. Court documents show that Wright's trial is expected to last five days. The trial was moved to December 8, 2014.
"Wright could potentially see up to 25 years in prison if convicted of child endangerment resulting in death, a Class B felony, and up to 10 years for a conviction of neglect or abandonment, a Class C felony.
The 26-year-old is also facing charges of assault on a peace officer causing bodily injury and interference with official acts in this case. Wright allegedly kicked the arresting officer — former Prairie City Police Chief Louis Modlin — in the chest during a struggle at 601 S. Norris St. in Prairie City." - The Newton Daily News
04/24/13: Parts of 911 Call Released
The Des Moines Register created a video of the 911 call; the news organization removed parts of the call. Gasping and sobbing between words, Jena Wright said, "My dog attacked the girl I was babysitting. I don't think --" Wright stayed on the phone for about 3 minutes, during which medics arrived. "She's not breathing. She has blood everywhere," Wright said. "My dog got her by the neck. Oh my God. I need an ambulance." Jordyn Arndt, 4-years old, did not survive her injuries.
"I'm trying to remain calm," Wright said on the call. "This has never happened before. I don't know what happened. Oh my God." - Jena Wright
On Monday, Jordyn was attacked by Wright's dog, a large pit bull named Brutus, in the backyard of Wright's Prairie City home. Wright, 24, was charged Tuesday with two felonies, child endangerment causing death and neglect or abandonment of a dependent person, along with several misdemeanors, including assault on a peace officer causing bodily injury. Combined, the felonies are punishable by up to 35 years in prison. Wright remains in the Jasper County Jail.
04/24/13: Previous Arrest of Babysitter
The Newton Daily News reports that Jena Marie Wright faces additional charges of interference with official acts and assault on a peace officer causing bodily injury; both charges are aggravated misdemeanors. Court documents also detail the felony charges pertaining to neglect or abandonment: "The defendant knowingly acts in a manner that created a substantial risk to the child’s physical safety by leaving her unattended with a large American Staffordshire dog."
The Daily News also reports that Wright, her husband Harmon Wright III and his father, Harmon Wesley Wright Jr., were arrested about a year ago on felony charges in connection with a marijuana growing operation. Wright was charged with neglect or abandonment of a child, possession of a controlled substance and three counts of failure to affix a drug tax stamp. The controlled substances were accessible to her 2-year old child who was removed from the home.
04/23/13: Babysitter Arrested
Prairie City, IA - On Monday, a 4-year old girl was attacked by a pit bull while under the care of her babysitter. Jordyn Arndt was airlifted to a hospital in Des Moines, but did not survive her injuries. On Tuesday, Prairie City Police arrested babysitter Jena Marie Wright, 24, of Prairie City in connection to the incident. Wright was charged with child endangerment resulting in death, and neglect or abandonment of dependent person. Wright was booked into the Jasper County Jail.
Buster Wright, who lives in the house where the girl was bitten, said the dog involved in the attack is an "American Staffordshire."
In 1936, the American Kennel Club (AKC) formally recognized pit bulls, but only under the name Staffordshire terrier in order to distance the breed from its use in dogfighting. In 1972, the AKC renamed the breed to American Staffordshire terrier. The legal definition of a pit bull, which is a class of dogs, includes the: American pit bull terrier, American Staffordshire terrier, Staffordshire bull terrier and any other pure bred or mixed breed dog that is a combination of these dogs.1
View: Iowa breed-specific laws
Related articles:
04/02/13: 2013 Dog Bite Fatality: 14-Month Old Wisconsin Boy Killed by Babysitter's Pit Bulls
10/27/09: 2009 Dog Bite Fatality: 19-Month Old Boy Killed by Pit Bull-Mix at Babysitter's Home
Photo: Des Moines Register
This is awful. We aren't even to the time of year where these attacks seem most common.
Yet another child killed by the pit bull people's 'nanny dog' lies.
WOW! 28th killed in 365 days by a pit bull….I haven't seen anything about this on national tv….but yesterday I saw a long segment of Fox news about a boy that got attacked by an alligator in Florida. The child could stand and talk and their were pictures of his scratches, contusions and lacerations. I wanted to scream through the tv somehow, "DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE BEEN MAULED BY PIT BULLS AND ROTTWEILERS JUST THIS WEEK IN THE US?"
This little girl was the 28th American killed by a pit bull in the past 365 days.
Despite the worthless, breed neutral assurances from the dog lobby, the fatalities and the serious maulings are accelerating.
It's an EARNED RAP!
i could be wrong but i think the chihuahua DBRF still stands at zero .
Poor baby.
I was just at a Pet Expo this last weekend.
Two of the pit bull booths has large signs that read "Nanny Dog"
People just like to be spoon fed "information" and I am shocked that anyone with half a brain cell would believe it.
For those attending pet expos, download some of the safety flyers that are available on this site. Then share them around the expo.
Your Quiet Neighbor I had not even thought of that.
I will print things up for next year when I attend.
This particular Pet Expo I attended had 30,000 paid attendees last year. It seemed larger this year.
I would love a Dog Bite Org booth to be at something like that with that kind of exposure. The average pet person needs to know the truth about these monsters.
Backyard BREEEEEEDers, at least in the past.
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https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.198547723380.127636.501843380&type=3
Gee, wonder if they ever got Brutus (the attacker) neutered? If so, I guess he didn't calm down…
What happened to the female pit bull — this woman refers to plural dogs.
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http://www.kwwl.com/story/22057947/2013/04/23/child-dies-after-she-was-mauled-by-a-dog
Neighbors say they complained about the dog before. "My children, I have three boys here at home, I have seven nieces and nephews that go over to visit their grandmother," Neighbor Kristen Cleverley said. "They're not allowed to be outside when the dogs are outside."
CORRECTION:
In the interest of fairness and in light of the boy being killed in Georgia yesterday, I must correct myself:
There have been 29 Americans killed by Pit Bulls in the past 365days.
Jeez!….
If you're a neighbor complaining about this type of dog, make sure that you complain to:
1. The owner of the property. Do so in writing. Certified mail, return receipt requested.
2. Your public officials. If you're calling the police or animal control, get the case number. You'll need it in case something happens.
The above are meant to start a paper trail. It's hard to say "We didn't know that the dog was a problem!" when such a trail exists.
From sleuthing on her FB page, she also has young children….not wise to keep a pit bull named Brutus when you have small kids…dummy.
This news report has been circulated widely. If you search this or a related report, you will find 1,000s of nutter comments to peruse.
Are you referring to the couple's known dangerousness of the dog (which was even evident on the 2009 FB post)? There was more today. Her husband is disgusting, reprehensible. (and don't forget who his dad is, or at least live-in relative, this mega loser: http://on.fb.me/11IS7ye)
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http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20130425/NEWS/304250090/Monroe-woman-reports-earlier-run-dog
This morning as I read this article on Fox News about the defeat of a criminal background check on folks that want pit bulls, Rottweilers and Mastiffs, I could not help but wonder if this baby would have been saved had something like this been in place.
As well as in the other recent babysitter pit bull fatality.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/04/26/angry-pet-owners-bark-back-at-proposed-north-carolina-background-check-bill/?test=latestnews
Heartbreaking.
My father, a mail carrier, was killed by three pit bulls in 1981 while delivering mail in Southern California. I guess because of this, I have always kept up with these types of horrible deaths. It's so many, and so very sad. I hate when people try to argue that it is only the fault of the owner and how they are raised. That can be a part of it but people have too know. These dogs have been purposely bred to be more and more aggressive. It is in their nature like any wild animal. Anyone that owns one should know that like a wild animal they can turn on you or someone else at any time. They just seen to look past all of the evidence of this and say, "not my dog! Mine is different" until it's not and it attacks or kills. These people need to be prosecuted just as anyone that wields a loaded weapon does and someone dies.