After a domestic altercation "agitated" two pit bulls in Akron, one pit bull killed a baby.
Clarifications
UPDATE 10/08/21: Some important clarifications have been made in this "messed up" dog bite fatality. On October 3, one or both family pit bulls residing at 371 Westmoreland killed a child that was under the care of her 20-year old uncle. Just before the attack, her uncle had gotten into a fight with a female, also aged 20, on the enclosed front porch of the home. Police believe the domestic altercation between the adults "agitated" the pit bulls causing one to attack the child.
Subsequent news reports stated that one of the pit bulls had been declared "vicious" due to attacking a letter carrier in June. Actually, both pit bulls already had this designation, due to Akron having an ordinance that requires the owners of pit bulls and other fighting breeds to adhere to the same restrictions as dogs declared vicious. The letter carrier, who was bitten on the thigh and hand, even asked that citations not be issued afterward, according to a city animal bite report.
The Akron ordinance, however, suffers from enforcement issues and lack of personnel, according to a report from the Akron Beacon Journal. Notably, the Journal also learned that a third-degree felony charge of endangering a child was dismissed against an Akron family member by a Summit County grand jury after a family pit bull attacked and killed a 7-month old baby, who was being held by his 77-year old grandmother. That fatal dog attack occurred in August of 2020.
Bites Properly Investigated?
WOIO News has also been examining this case. Not only was a letter carrier bitten by one of these pit bulls, other people were bitten too. Mail to the home was suspended after the attack on the letter carrier. A person who lives at the home was bitten by one of the dogs in March. The owner of the dogs -- which police are now saying is unclear -- was uncooperative during that investigation. The uncle has been uncooperative during the fatal biting incident as well.
The female involved in the altercation is the ex-girlfriend of the uncle. That is why the uncle was uncooperative -- he did not want her to get into trouble. The police report lists her as a suspect in his assault, but at this point she has not been charged. Previously, WOIO interviewed the parents of Ka'Vay Louis, who do not blame the uncle for the attack, but do blame his ex-girlfriend. Despite the previous bites, Ka'Vay's parents never worried about her safety with the two pit bulls.
Attorneys Andrea Burton, Billi Copeland King and Walter Madison represent the family. They sent WOIO a statement that reads in part, “It is the family’s sincere wishes for all culpable parties involved to be charged to the fullest extent of the law. Otherwise, steps will be undertaken to convene a grand jury for consideration of charges outside of the Summit County Prosecutor’s Office.” The family will also be starting a foundation to help victims of vicious dog attacks.
10/04/21: Classified as "Vicious"
A 16-month old girl killed by one or both family pit bulls has been identified as Ka'Vay Louis-Calderon. The 20-year old uncle was babysitting the girl when he got into an argument with a woman on the enclosed front porch of the home. “The little girl was left inside the house with the two family pets and as this disturbance, fight, was occurring outside, it’s believed that the dogs reacted and turned their aggression to this beautiful 16-month old little girl,” Chief Mylett said.
One of the pit bulls had already been classified as "vicious" for attacking a postal carrier. This scenario should led to "instant" criminal charges -- when an adult leaves a child alone with a dog legally declared vicious due to a previous attack -- but this is not on Mylett's radar. "I’m reluctant to lay blame or responsibility on anybody right now. At this point, the family is mourning the loss of a 16-month-old baby. But rest assured, we’re going to get to the bottom of what happened."
The Akron Beacon Journal reports the baby did not live at the home. It is unknown how familiar the child was with the two pit bulls. The 20-year old woman, who was arguing with the uncle on the front porch, also did not live at the home. Lt. Michael Miller told the Journal the whole thing is a "messed up" tragedy. Many fatal dog maulings indeed are. But this attack involves a dog classified as "vicious" being left alone with a young child while her adult caretaker engaged in a "domestic."
10/04/21: Pit Bull Kills Baby Girl
Akron, OH - Another baby in Akron is dead after being attacked by a pit bull. Akron police were dispatched to a home in the 300 block of Westmoreland Street at 10:30 am Sunday in response to a pit bull attack. Arriving officers found a 16-month old girl suffering from critical injuries. She was transported to Akron Children’s Hospital, where she later died. Police believe a domestic altercation between two adults at the home "agitated" the pit bulls causing one to attack the child.
The fight between the two adults at the home -- a man and a woman -- did not involve the child's parents, according to authorities. Police did not identify the baby, her parents or the two fighting adults. Police did not explain why an argument between two adults would cause two pit bulls -- dogs selectively bred for the purposes of dogfighting -- to suddenly Blitzkrieg on a nearby helpless baby. The Summit County Medical Examiner will perform on autopsy on the baby girl.
Audio dispatch log files from Broadcastify.com indicate the pit bulls were "at large" too. "Copy that. 371 Westmoreland two pit bulls at large, copy," says a voice who might have been animal control. The dispatcher replied, "Be advised, it started out as a domestic, so there are plenty of APD and EMS on scene." Animal control eventually collected both pit bulls. "Our deepest thoughts and condolences go out to the family," the Akron Police Department said in part in a statement.
In August 2020, less than five miles away, a family pit bull killed a 7-month old baby boy. The child's grandmother had been holding the child in her arms when the dog attacked. That child was also taken to Akron Children’s Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Since January 2020, family pit bulls have killed at least two infants in Dayton, Ohio as well. In one case, the infant's mother was sleeping on the sofa at the time. In the other case, the dog smothered the baby.
Infamous "Domestic" Case
The most notorious fatal pit bull mauling that "started out as a domestic" occurred in Texas back in 2012. In that case, police were at the home in connection with a domestic altercation between the baby's parents when the mauling took place. Police were outside the home taking statements from witnesses, when the child's grandfather set the baby on a bed inside the home. When the grandfather realized the baby had been attacked, he picked up the baby and fled outside.
Even when police are present, a family pit bull can kill a child. The mother in the Texas case had dropped the baby off at the father's home for visitation. The altercation between the parents, which escalated into pushing, occurred about an hour before the fatal attack. Apparently, that pit bull, which had a bite history, was still agitated at the time. Minutes before the attack, the mother had told a neighbor her main concern was the dog, and the baby being in the house with the dog.
Home in the 300 block of Westmoreland Street in Akron where family pit bulls killed a child.
View the DogsBite.org Google Map: Ohio Fatal Pit Bull Maulings.Related articles:
08/11/20: 2020 Dog Bite Fatality: Baby Attacked and Killed by Family Pit Bull in Akron, Ohio
09/26/12: 2012 Dog Bite Fatality: Domestic Dispute Call Ends in Fatal Dog Mauling of Baby
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.
Dangerous breed canines attack with a zero-length fuse. No fuse of any length is necessary. So, when a short fuse can be fabricated, that provides license for the dog to attack. The pro-attack dog people fawn over any possible excuse to make the killing ok. Two adults having a domestic altercation = Dead Baby. That makes perfect sense to the dog worshipers, because, after all, it was Dog Almighty that they worship and serve and sacrifice their children to, that chose the perfect human baby sacrifice. It’s just a thing that they are ok with.
How strange. If we have an argument in front of our Golden Retrievers they seek attention and reassurance, by pushing nose against the family member’s hand.
When the wife and I got in a heated argument that was on the loud side. Our Yorkie would get her hand puppet toy and come to us and growl and shake the toy. That would usually finish the argument. She achieved harmony through being cute not by being deadly and destructive.
Time and time again this is proven to be normal pitbull behavior. When tensions and anger escalate and human beings in close proximity, the dog becomes agitated and aggressive and is prone to attack either an innocent bystander such as a small child or the person involved in the argument with the pitt’s owner. This should really become part of the breed standard temperament.
Okay, let me see if I understand this. I get into an argument with someone else in my house, and the dog could attack that individual or me?
On Saturday, I was out bicycling around town. Rode past a marijuana dispensary that had a tent promoting, I kid you not, pit bull adoptions.
One of the dear, sweet pibble-wibbles even had an “Adopt Me” vest on it. As soon as I saw that fashion statement, I made sure that I was as far away from that tent as I could possibly be.
In order to want to adopt one of these canine hoodlums, you would have to be on drugs.
I have neighbors up the street with a vicious pit bull, a fact they admitted to me somewhat proudly. They smoke enough weed you can smell it a block away.
What world are we living in? You can have an argument in front of rabbits, snakes, cats, birds, hamsters, turtles, and a litany of non-fighting dog breeds and they won’t kill your baby. Why are these pit bull monsters deemed as acceptable pets??? No one needs these mutants in their homes!
Stupid people like to own dangerous animals. That’s why we ban most dangerous animals, so we don’t have accidental deaths.
That’s why we need to ban pit bulls.
I’m amazed by the number of people in the world who are able to read the minds of dogs and understand their reasons. Why don’t we just all blame this on the lady on the front porch? It’s all her fault. Not the dog owner, certainly not the dogs. Cause and effect, people: if she hadn’t been there arguing with the uncle, that baby would still be alive. Obviously. /s
Just wanted to point out that I wrote this before this came out: “The family wants the woman involved in the altercation to face felony charges.” Predictable. They want to blame anyone but themselves. Interesting to hear it’s unclear who owns the dog – sounds like the family unwilling to own up to what they have done.
The time and money that will be spent trying to determine if both mutts were responsible or just one or the other, upsets me too. Just euthanize both and be over with that easy decision.
Imagine living in a house with a dog that is so on edge that it’s like playing hot potato with a live grenade.
Often I’m prone to sneezing fits that always attract the attention {and usually the amusement} of anyone who witnesses me in so engaged.
I just hope that I’m never around a pit when ever one of these fits occur. Needless to say, I wouldn’t dare be in a household with any dog that even vaguely resembles a pit.
This takes the game of “Hot Pitato” to the next level.
For those of you ho don’t know “Hot Pitato” is when you “adopt” someone else’s “wonderful” pit that they just can’t keep anymore. Usually they have to get rid of it becase it tried to eat another dog, kid or their spouse. They are sure however the pit will be no trouble at your house.
Sooner or later the music stops and the “Hot Pitato” goes off like a hand grenade. When that happens it becomes a “tragic accident no one could have seen coming”.
Just yesterday I saw my neighbors outside in their yard playing with their toddler and an unleashed pit bull. The dog probably weighs as much as the child and is much, much stronger. A terrible thing could happen in an instant–is it worth it?
This is once again, the “Nanny Dog” myth ending in another tragedy. I’m sure pit nuts justified the postal worker because he’s seen as an “intruder” right? ugh! But here we have a 20 year-old whose frontal lobe (which controls judgement) is not quite developed and thinks it’s a good idea to leave his loveable nanny dogs ALONE with a baby. Even for one second, one minute. And, I’m sorry to place any blame on the bereaved parents, but dear God, why would you leave your child with a big child and two “vicious” dogs? These are questions many of us ask here. But then again, the answer and the outcome are predictable when we have facts, statistics and many pictures of deceased children…the collateral damage of pit propaganda.
The blame lies squarely on the uncle AND whichever parent/guardian chose to leave Kavay with him. It is no secret between these adults/(teen) parents that one of the dogs attacked a postal worker and they still chose the 20-year-old uncle to be a babysitter. I am going to guess that is the grandparents’ house or that the young uncle lives there with the sister or brother’s family and that it is their house.
Lt. Michael Miller, you sir are part of the executive branch of government. It is not your job to be judge and jury. If the uncle had a loaded handgun sitting out and prior felony for anything and this baby accidentally shot herself, you would charge him. Even without any prior felony, you would charge him. If he left drugs our and the baby died of an overdose, you would charge him. If he had a history of DUI and drove under the influence causing an accident that killed this child, you would charge him. What you wouldn’t do it say any of these scenarios are an accident, that he didn’t mean for this to happen, and that the whole family is grieving so no charges. Yes, they would all be “accidental” as in not on purpose but you would not ignore the circumstances. Lt. Michael Miller, Kavay deserves justice. It does not matter that a relative was responsible for her death. She died a brutal, torture death. Just because someone feels bad about this, this by no means erases the fact that a known vicious dog with a bite history involving multiple bites to one victim was being kept as a family pet with full knowledge of the danger this poses to humans.
Two adults are arguing *outside*.
_Inside_ the house, a pitbull eats a baby.
I need a Doctor Seuss worksheet to figure out how these two things are connected because my logic IQ can’t sink that low.
It is the pit bull butterfly effect. Now no pit attacks are the fault of the attacking pit. Somewhere on the planet there was an argument, the pit senses the argument using The Force (pits are Jedis now apparently, do try to keep up) and sensing the argument the pit has no choice but to attack.
Pit advocates have claimed for years that pits don’t make good companion dogs for PTSD sufferers becase they are “too sensitive”. They “sense” the owner’s feelings and catch PTSD, or somthing.
I would like to know the specific charges the family wants brought against the ex girlfriend. I don’t think upsetting a pit bull is actually illegal. Remember the problem isn’t that the uncle allowed a vicious animal access to a baby. The problem is the uncle’s ex gf had a verbal confrontation with him outside of the house.
How many times do you have to be dropped on your head for that to begin to make sense?
Am I the only one that thinks the pit didn’t know or care they were fighting?
They left the baby alone and unguarded and the pit attacked it. There is no need to look for a reason beyond “it’s what they do.”
Certainly makes the case, that a dog deemed vicious or danger should be euthanized. Period… no 2nd chance given to kill a baby.
“The family… …is also working on starting a foundation in Kavays’ name that will help victims of vicious dog attacks.”
All they have to do is get dangerous breed canines legally banned from our society. All they have to do is get dangerous breed canines physically removed from our neighborhoods. All they have to do is get dangerous breed canines sterilized and euthanized into extinction. Then, there will be no more future victims of dangerous breed canine attacks. Safe and happy are the people who live in neighborhoods that are free of dangerous breed canines. If national news carried fifty times per day a story of each of 50 Americans per day that get admitted into the hospital daily due to severe dog attack mauling, the people would be galvanized to take effective action to promptly eliminate this public health crisis from our lives.
how can they assume the cause was the argument going on outside? maybe the baby sneezed-or maybe the baby was having a seizure -and the pit bull was only trying to help save the baby by chewing on it
So the family’s story is the dog would have been fine if that woman had not started an argument?
Doesn’t it take 2 people to argue?
Don’t most couples argue now and then?
Seems to me the issue was the previously declared vicious pit not whatever they think triggered it.
Having a dog that is always cocked and loaded, ready to deliver a life ending attack seems to be a bigger issue than whatever event you estimate pulled the trigger.
No one actually knows if any of the 100’s of things claimed as “triggers” for pit attacks actually are what set the beasts off. Last I checked dogs don’t talk so it’s not like you can ask them “Why did you eat my baby?”
These people are deluded. They want to charge someone for arguing because it caused their dog to eat their baby? Can someone find me the logic of cause and effect in that? Did the pitbull eat babies when fire truck sirens wailed outside? Did it eat babies when there were noisy neighbours? Did it eat babies when the couple themselves, argued? Did it eat babies during a fireworks day?
They loved their baby so much they refused to give up their pitbull for her safety. I’m sure they’re grieving and angry, but how about putting the blame with it belongs?
On the pitbull and all the cultists that support them. On every writer who made money on a clickbait article calling pitbulls, “nanny dogs”.
The only problem with this is that one of the pits already had a dangerous dog designation after attacking a postal worker who sustained multiple bites. That is why there is blame on the uncle and parents.
That made me sick. Two people have been bitten by the pit and they still want to blame a third party? Wtf? They continue to defend the dog and point to an unrelated women instead of to themselves. What trash. What trash lawyers you push for a grand jury to go after the woman on the porch. They might as well go after the two prior dog bite victims because by getting themselves bit they primed the pit for future attacks. Their fund/ foundation for vicious dog bite victims is an insincere money grab.
Watching this interview with the parents is a classic example of “too soon.” They’re making no sense at all. Clearly, they’re in shock. They say they don’t blame the uncle. What? He harbored at least one, probably two known vicious dogs. He also left that sweet little angel ALONE with the vicious dogs. The family claims the girl “loved” the dogs and she once lived in the household with them. It seems no adult in this family wants to take responsibility for this tragedy. Instead, they’re floundering around for someone to blame. As least the reporter had the guts to ask if the dogs should not have been in the house at all. Even that was difficult for them to answer. Never mind foundations for victims. How bout talking about the menace that pit bulls pose and the innocent lives left in their wake. May this beautiful little girl rest in peace.
In my opinion, this case will go nowhere, especially when the rest of the evidence comes out. These vicious dogs were locked & loaded to kill this child and/or any other human who “triggered” them. As far as any monetary settlement: blood from a stone. And if anything, all the adults will be deemed negligent. An adult who choses to own one of these time bombs is entitled to be mauled, but when it comes to children…it’s entirely preventable.
This whole situation is inane! Literally everything that could have gone wrong went wrong. The uncle owned the dog and chose not to euthanize it after it had attacked someone else and been deemed vicious. The parents allowed their toddler to be in the home with a pit bull that had been deemed vicious. The uncle allowed that pit bull to have free access to the little girl while he was outside where it killed her.
Why are people allowed to keep dogs that have already attacked? Pit bulls ESPECIALLY should be put down after any attack! This poor baby would still be alive had that beast been euthanized.
She also would still be alive if the dog owners had chosen pretty much any other dog breed. Can you imagine a labradoodle doing this? Even if the dreaded and vicious chihuahua had attacked this poor child, I’m pretty sure she would have survived. Poor choices right from the beginning.
So I googled the address where the attack happened and the name Deon Downer came up. Upon investigating, Mr. Downer was charged w animal abuse/neglect 6 or 7 mo ago. He is the current (or former) boyfriend of Kavay’s paternal grandmother. Downer and the grandmother allegedly share a young child together. He allegedly moved on Westmoreland after he was charged.I wonder if the dogs involved in that case were pits?
Oh the baby had a 55″ TV in her room. Well okay, then, her family couldn’t possibly be to blame for her horrible death. Must have been the fault of the unrelated lady who didn’t own the dogs, had nothing to do with the baby, and wasn’t even in the room at the time.
Is the negligent death of a baby “a private, family matter” and “they’ve suffered enough”? Is this really being investigated or are the powers that be putting off a decision until they’re sure which way the wind blows? What is justice in a case like this? Surely the family shouldn’t get away without some sort of public rebuke and reprimand. It seems really wrong to me that they’re working so hard to defend themselves and refuse to accept any responsibility whatsoever.