Category Archives: Criminal Charges & Trials

A collection of blog posts documenting the criminal trials of the owners of dangerous dog breeds after their dog seriously injures or kills a person.

2009 Dog Bite Fatality: 70-Year Old Dies After Violent Maiming by Pit Bulls

Lowell Bowden died after being horrifically mauled by a pack of pit bulls. Victim Dies of Injuries Lindside, WV - On November 27, Lowell Bowden was attacked by a pack pit bulls. Lowell's family submitted a statement to DogsBite.org that recounts the attack that led to his death on December 4. This marks the second fatal dog attack in West Virginia this year, both attributed to pit bulls. We urge West Virginia citizens to contact their state legislators and ask that they sponsor… [Read full blog post]

2009 Dog Bite Fatality: 2-Year Old Boy Killed by Chained Pit Bull in Luling, Texas

Tyson Miller, 2-years old, was mauled to death by a chained pit bull in Luling, Texas. Mother Indicted UPDATE 05/14/09: A Caldwell County Grand Jury indicted the mother of a 2-year-old boy this week who was attacked and killed by a chained up pit bull. Melissa Miller, 24, faces charges of injury to a child and criminally negligent homicide, both felonies, in the March 26 death of Tyson Miller, according to a Caldwell County press release. The grand jury returned the indictment… [Read full blog post]

2007 Dog Bite Fatality: Kylie Cox, 4-Months Old, Killed by a Rottweiler

Jail Time for Owner UPDATE 11/12/08: Christopher Fura -- the 21-year-old Warren man whose rottweiler, Chopper, killed an infant last year -- pleaded no contest to involuntary manslaughter and began a six-month jail sentence today. Macomb County Assistant Prosecutor Steve Kaplan said Fura pleaded just before a jury was to be selected for his trial today. Fura previously had entered the same plea, but withdrew it six weeks ago when prosecutors insisted he serve at least 6-m… [Read full blog post]

Defendant Diane Cockrell Pleads No Contest in Double Fatal Dog Mauling in Livingston County

Dog Owner Sentenced UPDATE 09/18/08: The owner of the dogs that mauled to death two people last year, Cheryl Harper, 56, and Edward Gierlach, 91, has been sentenced. Diane Cockrell, 52, of Iosco Township, was ordered to serve a minimum of 3.5 years to a maximum of 15 years in prison for allowing her American bulldogs-mixes to run free and kill two people in rural Iosco Township in 2007. The MLive Michigan article reported that Cockrell shocked some people in the packed courtroo… [Read full blog post]