Geraldine Hamlin, 64, died after two family pit bulls attacked her in Shreveport.
Family Dogs Kill Woman
Shreveport, LA - On Friday night, a Shreveport news station reported that a 64-year old woman died after being attacked by two family pit bulls in her home. The attack occurred Thursday evening at her residence in the 2900 block of 7th Street in the MLK neighborhood. According to Shreveport police, the homeowner's son came home to find his pit bulls standing over his mother. The dogs had inflicted multiple bites on her arms. Animal control took both pit bulls into custody.
The Caddo Parish Coroner's office later identified the victim as Geraldine Hamlin. She was attacked by the pit bulls about 10:00 pm Thursday, February 27 inside her home. She was taken to Ochsner LSU Health hospital, where she died of her injuries early Friday morning. An autopsy is scheduled to be performed at the same medical center. No other information has been released, including how long the family had owned the dogs and whether she was alone during the attack.
Sunday Updates
Geraldine Hamlin shared her home with her son and the dogs, Shreveport Police Corporal Angie Willhite confirmed Saturday. "Her son had been gone and when he arrived back at the house he found his mother with multiple dog bite injuries to her arms," Willhite said. The victim knew the two dogs well. "I believe they had owned them for four years is what I've been told," Willhite said. "The pets were no strangers to the family," she said. It's unknown why the family pit bulls attacked.
One the of the victim's sons shows two pit bulls on his Facebook page, posted in 2019.
Home on 7th Street where a 64-year old woman was killed by family pit bulls in Shreveport.
View the DogsBite.org Google Map: Louisiana Fatal Pit Bull Maulings.Related articles:
01/11/18: 2018 Dog Bite Fatality: Woman Killed by Pit Bull at Pet Boarding Facility in Louisiana
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.
Family dynamics are unpredictable, when there are wild, dangerous unpredictable animals in the family.
Like having Mountain Lions in the home?
My sympathies are limited in this case. This was a family pit bull to her and it was her choice to let her adult son live with (or never leave) her and bring two pit bulls into the home.
It’s not always a choice when it comes to your kids. Chances are she didn’t know of the dangers pits pose. My 67 year old friend who has always been a dog person still says it’s all how you raise them. She is a highly educated woman but she still thinks that. It’s extremely difficult to deal with adult children. I have allowed things that I never thought I would.
I have friends who are intelligent, but uninformed about the danger of owning or being around a pit bull. They continue to say, it’s how they’re raised. As is often asked, though, did this son “raise” his dogs to kill his own mother? Further, of course, she trusted her son and this murderous breed. I’m sure a few days before they killed her, she would have said she liked these dogs.
I am saddened by another senseless death. They are increasing in frequency, and severity. Elderly owners (much like infants), are no threat to these dogs, yet are still killed. These dogs have no rule book they follow. Thank you, again for the latest updates.
I have a neighbor off Jefferson paige road pitbull dog just roams the neighborhood as if he’s patrolling it, i told the owner about his dog, simply apologize and said I’ll make sure hes up, thats been about a year now, i even called animal control but nothing was done. That dog even had me afraid to get out of my car, he stood in my neighbor’s yard barking as if he was going to attack, thank God my son was there to help.
Don’t allow yourself to be a pit bull victim. If you don’t like guns have a hatchet or machete, keep it ON your person if you’re outside. Have one in your car.
Bear spray, too. Isn’t it awful that we, our society, has to even have this conversation? Our streets, our parks and our neighborhoods are not safe anymore. People are held hostage, and nothing is done until something awful happens. Sad commentary on where we are today.
It is absolutely disgusting that you called your local Animal Control about this habitual problem and they did nothing.
And it is absolutely criminal the way our government agencies have abandoned their responsibility to the taxpayer in favor of coddling dangerous dogs and the sociopaths who own them and let them roam at large. There is NO reason why you or anyone else should be afraid to get out of your car because of someone else’s choice to own one of these animals.
I urge you to write to or contact your local media and tell them your story. **If Animal Control had done its job when you called them, this lady would still be alive.** Her blood is on their hands, too; they put it there when they decided to ignore a dangerous dog terrorizing an entire neighborhood instead of confiscating the animal and/or fining the owner–and continuing to do so until the problem stopped.
I am so sorry that happened to you.
Another life claimed already. I wonder if they were her own dogs or if she allowed the son to move in with them? The latter tends to be a theme with these elderly deaths by family dogs.
Cue the pit pushers saying “Dogs don’t attack for no reason* so she must have threatened them.”
And the ones which will say, “Dogs never attack for no reason* so she probably had a heart attack and they must have been trying to help her.”
*Except for Chihuahuas… they will definitely claim that all Chihuahuas attack for no reason.
She must have been afraid of them right from the moment her son brought them home. Dogs can sence fear, even a tad. But, know one will ever know Really what happened. Thoughts and prayers are with the family
pit bulls sense weakeness-u know like the 1’s elderly and babies have-for being old or small and helpless
One of the few breeds that will attack (unprovoked) children, the elderly and disabled.
I wonder what infants do to cause an attack. Hiccups? Cry? Drool? Kick? Etc.?
Breath.
If you go to the Google map note:
Beware of dog signs
cinder blocks and wood along fence line
I thinking they are not the angels that the son thought they were.
Yes, I noticed the cinder blocks right away, dogs digging under the fence
Richard Stratton, pit bull breeder, fancier – fighter, reportedly a dog fight judge when visiting in Mexico, bully dog mongerer and author of numerous pit bull books wrote that a (game insane) pit bull can sense the weaknesses of opponent (victim) and use that to its advantage.
Am I counting correctly? This makes 8 (possibly 10) human fatalities by pit bulls/pit mixes in the first 2 months of 2020? Unbelievable!
I was just about to go and count, myself. Good lord. I’ve been following this site since, oh, 2015/2016 or thereabouts? and have never seen this many deaths in this short a time span.
And yet still none of them have caused the uproar you would expect and the media is still not doing much if anything with it.
Colleen, I’ve actually wondered for some time why the site doesn’t have a counter? Or why every article on a death doesn’t say at the beginning or the end, “this is the 8th pit bull death of [year],” or, “This is the 8th DBRF of [year], and the 8th which involves pit bulls/is suspected to involve pit bulls,’ or whatever. Is that just something it would be too difficult to track, or would it step on your end-of-year figures, or…?
I’d be happy to keep a count myself and post it in comments, if it’s the former and you simply don’t have time to keep track of the numbers yourself–but if there’s some other reason why you don’t want a count kept as we go, please say so and I’ll refrain. Just let me know. You can email me if you prefer.
I think it’s wise to refrain from announcing anything not absolutely confirmed on this site. Too many pro pit bull people try to disparage the accuracy of the site as it is. Very excited about a new site design!
It makes me feel sad to hear of this happening in my state. When I first read this, it sounded like another case of “adult son moves in with mom and brings killer dogs with him”, but the situation still seems unclear. Regardless of what happened, the most heartbreaking thing is that the poor mother had to loose her life.
“ “The pets were no strangers to the family,” she said. It’s unknown why the family pit bulls attacked.”.
The definition of insanity right here. Pit bulls doing exactly what they were designed to do and some “official” saying ‘it’s unknown why the pits attacked.’ …. Where’s the tipping point when folks generally get a clue and stop getting these monsters as “pets”? I see more and more pits every day.