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59 thoughts on “2021 Dog Bite Fatality: Boy Killed, Mother Severely Injured in Violent Pit Bull Attack at Carteret Home

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  1. Dangerous canines are too dangerous to own as pets. Only one of the many problems of this Stygian scourge: Dangerous canines are insidious. For every second of every day, and for every second of every month, and every moment of every year, they lick the babies’ face. One second later, they are bathed in ten pints of the babies’ blood. One tiny, microscopic comforting thought: The police were safe.
    One mans’ pet animal is a young mothers’ baby killer.

  2. It’s outrageous that kids aren’t safe in their own fenced back yard because of people’s idiot choice of bloodsport dogs for pets. Pits are not pets.

    • Pit owners never have money to pay for the damages their dogs do. They need a factory prison setting where people like this owner can be incarcerated until their judgment is paid in full.

      • Common sense and a desire for justice would insist that the owners of these two killer dogs be given a humongous fine (to go to the boy’s parents) and a very long prison sentence. It was the owners’ responsibiliy to assure that their dogs would not be able to get loose. I am so very sorry for the family of this little boy.

      • If my dog attacked and killed a bald eagle, I would be fined a great deal of money and possibly get a jail sentence. When did birds (even the majestic Bald Eagle) become so much more important than a 3 year old child. Something is messed up here.

  3. Reading about the child’s injuries has me sickened. The amount of pain that boy must have suffered because the neighbors just had to have maulers AND couldn’t contain them.

  4. Another reason why you can’t trust pit people to self-police…The owner failed to register the canines with the borough — probably because there were too many or there was a record of these pits being loose…

  5. Another reason why you can’t trust pit people to self-police…The owner failed to register the canines with the borough — probably because there were too many pits/dogs or there was a record of these pits being loose…

  6. “The dogs burrowed under or broke through the fence-line to attack the boy”

    These dogs are nothing but predators. Period.

    When they’re not attacking, they’re just on a break.

  7. Can’t wait for all the pit nutters to come and spam these articles with pics of their disgusting shit eaters NOT killing anyone to ‘prove’ how ‘sweet’ they are, and blame the child. The child must have spooked the poor pibbles so badly that they had no choice but to run right toward the big scary 3 year old and fight for their lives. Or the owner must have aboosed them! NEVER the pit’s fault!

    • Ever notice nobody slaps flower crowns on beagles and spaniels?

      Maybe because it doesn’t take a con job to convince anyone they’re good family dogs.

  8. Every case discussed here is heart-wrenching but about once every year or two, there is a case that is so chilling that my mind stops reading at a certain point and does a moment of silence before re-reading one particular sentence over and over. This is one of those cases and that sentence is in yellow.

  9. Seriously, screw anybody defending these beasts. You obviously have NO regard for human life because “oooOOOhh look At mY pReCiOuS pIbbLe!! MY bAbY woUlD LiCk yOu tO dEaTh! It’S HoW yOu RaIsE ThEM!”
    You can’t love the genetics out of these dogs.
    You can’t “train” the genetics out of these dogs.
    The fact anybody would consistently defend these beasts more and more with each brutal mauling or murder they are responsible for proves just how ignorant pit nuts are.

  10. It is remarkable that these dogs were actually, correctly, identified by breed. Perhaps people are waking up to the danger of these dogs? Also, the police killed both dogs….The usual nonsense about “all” dogs can bite, it is all about how you raise them, etc. is spouted off. Sure, all dogs can bite, but the pit bull attacks….big difference. And the pit bull breed repeatedly sends people to the ICU and the morgue…..no other breed does that.

    • Talk to the neighbors. How many times have we heard that advice when it comes to dogs running loose, attacking people, growling, barking, et cetera, and so forth?

      I don’t know about the rest of you, but I have tried following this advice and have found it utterly useless.

      And, in the case of this little boy’s family, it was orders of magnitude more useless than it ever has been for me.

      • Talk to neighbors is a complete, total utter waste of time. And worse; when they lie to the police and fabricate what they falsely allege that you said. Fifteen minutes ago, I was walking on Rosser Drive near Piping Rock cul de sac, in Prescott, and a nice elderly lady in her driveway allows her small white fuzzy dog to snap/yarf/yap and run to my ankles. Full of immediate ankle anxiety, I dart from the sidewalk to the middle of the busy, double yellow lined street. Me and the fuzzball almost get run over by a car. I make good my departure by proceeding away. My turn around point is two blocks away. You will ever guess what happens a few minutes later when I pass that property again. The same exact thing. Same lady, standing there with her loose snapping/yapping fuzzball directly running and targeting my ankles; me and the dog in the middle of the busy street, again. I asked her nicely to mind her dogs’ safety. Of course, this was all recorded on my GoPro camera strapped to my head so she can receive a two-count ticket for both dog at large and also a two-count ticket for assault by approaching threatening dog/street endangerment. Nothing will change. People will die, and worse; be traumatically injured.

        • Good job Richard. I was about to suggest getting a bodycam.

          Also if any of the neighbours gets arrested for punting the little menace into traffic…you’ll have proof to help them.

      • All talking to the neighbors does is make you the “prime suspect” if anything ever happens to their dog that they refuse to contain. If that dog ever gets ran over or drinks some antifreeze from under a car expect the police to show up at your door asking questions.

        Likewise the same animal control that was “too busy” to enforce any of the laws about keeping your dog contained will have limitless resources to investigate you for animal cruelty if you ever have to defend yourself from their dog.

  11. Well, clean-up has begun. The “2 lovable guys” post has magically disappeared from the internet after multiple new comments with people linking this story. This appears to be protection measures for Carteret Police Department (who picked these two up), The Found Animals of Carteret, and the municipality in general. Part of the clean-up includes continued questions about who the dogs belonged to. I guess since they were not legally registered in the city they don’t belong to anybody so therefore no one is to blame (sarcasm font off).

    Thankfully, this news site has named the owner who claims: “This is a traumatic thing, and I have no idea what happened.” He is lawyering up.

    https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/ny-brooklyn-new-jersey-boy-fatally-mauled-neighbors-dogs-20210318-nskpt23habc37exxrildpcfjui-story.html

  12. The dog owner needs to be sued into the ground and jailed. They told him to control his dogs, he didn’t, and a little boy is now dead and a woman badly injured.

    I can’t even imagine what the family is feeling. To lose a child in this way is horrific. I especially feel back for the brothers who not only lost their brother, but witnessed him being killed by the beasts.

    • Can you imagine, she may not even know that her son is dead yet…..
      Surviving this brutal attack to learn that you’re not only disabled for live, but that your little boy was brutally and savagely ripped apart…..
      Some parents never recover from such a devastating event…” mentally “ .
      I hate to say it, perhaps she’s better of joining her son then live a live of pain, dispare and guilt.

  13. Murder via Dangerous Dogs unrelated to the victims.

    It is unclear if the owner will be charged with any crime ……..

    WTF kind of clown show society are we living in !?

    The money raised for this family will more likely go to medical bills , live long PTSD therapy and funeral expenses, not a new home !

  14. Terrifying how pit bulls have literally dug underneath fences to kill children and other dogs on the property of their own homes.

      • Disgusting.

        The people *without* a dog are not responsible for keeping their fence in good repair.

        In fact, they have zero legal obligation to fence their yard *at all*

        Where I grew up, most people didn’t bother with fences. Their kids all played across yards.

        Ack, the level of victim-blaming is astonishing whenever it comes to pitbulls.

        • The entire planet is a pit playground now. If you don’t want yourself, your kids, your pets or livestock mauled to death it is up to you to spend the money to install a pit proof fence. Nevermind the fact that zoning in most towns will only allow 6 foot high on the back and sides and 4 foot high in the front and that pits can easily clear fences that high.

          The phrase “total evisceration” is going to stick with me for a while. Yet the media still calls these “dog bites”. As if there was one bite and in some fluke the dog hit the jugular or something.

  15. I know this is semi-off topic but I honestly would love to see Americans have universal healthcare.

    Watch how fast pitbulls are yeeted into the stratosphere when it costs *everyone* millions for these injuries and the public gets sick of paying for the results. That was one of the primary motivators in Ontario launching BSL.

    • How vigorously is the BSL enforced in Ontario? Or is it just another one of those dog laws that’s on the books, but nothing ever happens?

      • Not vigorously enough in my estimation. Used to be much more strictly enforced. However, if a neighbour does call animal control, they generally do tend to turn up at some point.

        However there *was* a massive drop in the number of pitbulls for about a decade after and they’re still not as prevalent as say, huskies, GSDs etc. as large dog choices.

        There shouldn’t be any left at this point–or they should be so decrepit they would have no teeth to bite with. Also, no shelters are allowed to adopt them out so a trip to the dog pound is a one-way trip which I expect has massively impacted their numbers. The rescues have been caught and publicly shamed about shipping them out of province–resulting in that practise being stopped as far as I can tell.

        That said, pitbull murders are pretty much down to zero.

        Can’t remember the last time I saw one although I suspect a number of dog attacks are covered up. I suspect the fact that one recorded bite means the dog is immediately euthanized has had not only had a chilling effect on the purchase of them, but owners are more cautious if they do see signs of aggression to keep them contained or get rid of them.

        • Clarification:

          Can’t remember the last time I read about a pitbull murder…not that I haven’t seen any pitbulls.

          The one thing that hasn’t been properly enforced is that pitbull owners are required to muzzle them in public…and that was more prevalent right after the ban, and not enforced enough, now.

  16. The above story is devastating. My GSD was attacked on my property 11 days ago by nextdoor neighbor’s pit that busted through a wooden fence. $750 in vet bills later, the dog has been allowed back on the property deemed potentially dangerous as she just mauled my dog. She has to attack me or kill my dog and then be deemed dangerous. Neighbors not required to fix fence or completely fence back yard so dog has access to anyone unfortunate enough to be walking by. Dog is also required to be tethered whenever outside but that is not making me feel safe. WTF is wrong with this picture ? Bear spray on sale at Costco…..

    • She has been released from the hospital and she will be at tomorrow’s vigil! Has Santos Rodriguez been charged with any crime? We continue to wait on this and my online searching is showing nothing. A snippet from yesterday’s GFM update:

      “There will be a vigil on Sunday, March 28th at 6:00 PM at 49 Laurel street, Carteret NJ 07008

      There has been no prosecution towards the owners of the murderous Pitbulls and it seems like justice is being swept underneath the rug. We need the town to hear our voices, we need them to see our faces and our disappointment on how this is being handled. Please join us there! Shabana has been released from the hospital and she will be there with her husband Tanveer. Please send a message for more details if needed.”
      *******
      Thankfully, the family is at $212K on their GFM but it will never be enough for what they have been through.

      On another note, according to one of the GFM donors, this child died last week:

      https://www.kansascity.com/news/state/missouri/article250139744.html

      • According to the GFM, he lost pretty much all of the right side of his face. The family cautiously uses the work “dog” and never mentions it was a pit bull that did this.

      • wow that is unbeleivable- that rodriguez is prob not even going to have any consequences whatsoever-zero-and 1 thing that makes it so much more wrong on another level is the fact that the mother confronted him more than once on her concerns about his dog running loose was unacceptable and he laughed her off each time – thats just too wrong and now the worst happened-i dont know how he can live with himself-he SHOULD kill himself-he should want to anyway
        (im sure alot of ppl prob think thats horrible of me to say but thats my opinion)
        and also the fact that those sorry cops had the dogs in their custody and STILL those 2 dogs were never registered for a license-i think that is laziness and sloppiness on their part and they helped cause a 4 yr to die a very painful and horrifying death -shame on all of them and that frichin santos rodriguez
        thanks for the update Christy

  17. Again the unthinkable, again the heart rending suffering of a little boy and his mother. Again a prosecutor with no imagination or determination or character to find a way to deliver justice. The impotent dog codes are not the only laws on the books that pertain to this predictable outcome of an aggressive pit bull’s repeated behavior over time demonstrated for all to see and a spineless prosecutor who doesn’t have the brains or the courage or the sense of justice to find a way to bring charges and prosecute this horrific crime.
    I’m hoping she will have a confrontation with her conscience and turn around and find a way to exact the awful burden of the law on the man who is responsible for the horror and endless suffering and grief visited upon this innocent child, his mother abd his family.I have written her and encouraged her to find a way to prosecute this owner and to heck with the useless dog codes. There is an endless record of case law. She has to have the conscience and dedication to find it and use it. I hope the family will go after the city for a settlement. And I hope their community will stand behind them to that end and go and demonstrate outside the police department and demand justice.

  18. I acquired my concealed carry license and purchased a handgun after a next door neighbor’s pitbull continually displayed aggression every time I walked down my driveway to the mail box.

    I have since moved. unfortunately there are three people with five aggressive pitbulls in close proximity to me in this new neighborhood.

    fortunately, the lease is up soon.

    also I live in florida where ‘stand your ground’ applies to dogs.

  19. Is there not a way to charge Santos Rodriguez with gross negligence manslaughter. From everything I’m reading on Wikipedia about this, his negligence concerning his dogs constitutes gross negligence manslaughter. Seems to be especially true since there was a history of these dogs being out, a clear history of being an irresponsible pet owner without having them licensed as well as not keeping them contained, and a reported history of one of the victims verbalizing to him on more than one occasion that the animals were aggressive and out of their enclosure.

    • From another source: Ciccone, in her letter, said there was no evidence of “intentional, knowing, or reckless criminal conduct,” on the part of the dog owner.

      So, is it not evident that these 2 loveable guys were known to the police for running loose and not being licensed? Is it evidence that Santos Rodriguez has a “Beware of Dog” sign on his fence? No, I think something else is going on here because Yolanda released this as a joint statement with the police department. The same police department that had these 2 loveable guys In their possession and returned them to the owner unlicensed as they were previously. They made no follow-up to make sure the owner got the dogs licensed. What this is, is CYA all the way and trying to prevent the police department/city from being held culpable in any way and sued.

      https://nypost.com/2021/03/31/dog-owner-whose-pitbulls-killed-nj-child-will-not-be-charged/

      • I finally see the pit owner’s name. Is there any element of a hate crime here? Government entities did their job in a lackadaisical fashion, the pit owner ignored the mother’s and other neighbor’s concerns; government entities also failed to address the concerns, and there is overwhelming evidence that pits are dangerous, and these pits were going into the yard. It’s a ridiculously long chain, but why not pursue it? It amounts to a hate crime to shrug it off.

  20. If the authorities are too cowardly to act, then the people of Carteret need to make sure that they never let the dog owner forget what he did. Make every minute of his life a living hell. Call him out in public anywhere he is seen. Don’t give him a moment of peace.

  21. This reminds me so much of the Klonda Richey case. She tried so hard to keep herself safe from her neighbor’s dogs, even offering to buy their house. Calls to the cops and animal control were to no avail. The lily-livered prosecutor declined to press charges there as well.

  22. They are always trying to rename these beasts, I have a suggestion. Total Evisceration Terriers. At least when they do what they do nobody has the right to act surprised.

    I hope the family gets a good lawyer and goes after the police (and the city and or county) for returning these illegal killers to their irresponsible owner. Had they actually been taken to a shelter and not retuned unless the owner paid the fine and registered them I bet the owner would have abandoned them. Then this poor kid would still be alive and playing with his brothers.

  23. stupid laws, are you aware that a farmer can shoot to kill,a wild animal, if they THINK it (MIGHT) or WILL attack or kill their livestock,but if a loose pet pitbull attacks your child, the by-law officer ,will put the dangerous attacking murderous,PITBULL in a animal shelter,with warm place to sleep and food,and most times , given back to owner,or up for adoption,so the citys by-laws will protect chickens, but not your child,SO SAD THAT LITTLE BOY GOT BITTEN TO DEATH

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