Infant killed, mother injured in multi-victim family dog attack in Woodbridge.
Pit Bull Confirmed
UPDATE 03/11/24: On Monday, the prosecutor's office confirmed with News 12 New Jersey and WKXW that the dog involved in the deadly attack was a family pit bull. On Saturday, the dog attacked a 3-month old baby boy, killing him, and attacked his mother at their home on Mereline Avenue. The pit bull has been euthanized. The baby's mother has been released from the hospital. Middlesex County prosecutors said the family's name is not being released. No criminal charges will be filed.
Also, CBS News anchor Carissa Lawson, who formerly worked for News 12 New Jersey for over a decade, posted to Facebook that "a couple at my church knows the family and told us the entire story." The baby was not left alone with the dog, she wrote. "The dog went into baby’s room while everyone was asleep. The mother heard the baby screaming and went in to try to save her baby and that’s when the dog tried to kill her, too." Her LinkedIn page states she left News 12 in June 2023.
"The coincidence now is that I found out this morning that a couple at my church knows the family and told us the entire story. We were all crying. The baby was not left alone with the dog. The dog went into baby’s room while everyone was asleep. The mother heard the baby screaming and went in to try to save her baby and that’s when the dog tried to kill her, too. The father, who owned the dog prior, was able to stop the attack, but he was injured, too. The dog was not treated poorly. The dog was dearly loved. And yes -- the dog was a pit bull." - CBS News anchor Carissa Lawson
03/10/24: Baby Killed, Mother Injured
Woodbridge, NJ - An infant is dead and his mother seriously injured after a multi-victim "family" dog attack Saturday morning. Authorities were dispatched to a home on Mereline Avenue in Woodbridge Township at about 6:17 am in response to a 911 call that reported a baby had been attacked by a dog. Upon arrival, police found the baby and the mother had sustained serious injuries. The infant was pronounced dead at the scene. The mother was taken to a hospital, where the father joined her.
Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone issued a statement to media notifying them of the attack, but it did not include the baby's age or identify the family. No dog breed information was provided either. Ciccone is memorable, as it was her office that did not pursue charges after a pair of pit bulls breached a fence-line in 2021 and killed 3-year old Aziz Ahmed and critically injured his mother while they were inside their own yard. The boy suffered "total evisceration" injuries.
We had no kind words for her then about how she issued her prosecution decision: "Ciccone, however, never contacted Aziz's family before issuing her decision in emails to private citizens on March 23. Lacking in courage and courtesy, Ciccone also did not hold a press conference about her decision, which would have forced her to face media and public scrutiny," we wrote. "Ciccone's actions are so sheepish and cowardly, they are literally 'beyond the pale.' Our hearts go out to Aziz's family."
Multi-Victim Fatal Dog Attacks
Now Ciccone faces another multi-victim dog attack involving a dead child and critically injured mother. This time, however, the "family" dog was the perpetrator. It was also a "single family" dog that instigated the attack not a "pair" of unfamiliar pit bulls. What types of dog breeds inflict multi-victim attacks resulting in death? During the pre/post Covid 4-year period of 2020 to 2023, multi-victim attacks involved 15% of all dog bite fatalities (33/215). 73% (24) were carried out by pit bulls.
Eight dog breeds were involved in 1 death. Only pit bulls (24 deaths), rottweilers (2 deaths) and American bulldogs (2 deaths) were involved in multiple deaths. While multi-victim attacks resulting in at least 1 human death can be a "rampage" attack, like when two family pit bulls killed two children in Tennessee and critically injured their mother, we only require that the injury sustained by the other victim(s) was consequential, requiring treatment by a professional at the scene or at a hospital.
We also looked at multi-victim attacks resulting in death inflicted by a family dog during this period, and within this subset, a single family dog being the perpetrator. Of the 33 multi-victim attacks involving at least 1 human death, over half, 55% (18) involved family dogs as perpetrators. 72% (13/18) were inflicted by family pit bulls. Of the 18 multi-victim attacks involving family dogs, 56% (10) were carried about by a single family dog. 70% of these attacks were inflicted by a single family pit bull.

Breeds of dogs Involved in multi-victim dog attacks resulting in death (2020-2023). Several attacks involved multiple breeds, thus producing a death count total of 36 rather than 33.

After a person who knows the mother admitted it was a pit bull, the comment was removed.
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03/30/21: 2021 Dog Bite Fatality: Boy Killed, Mother Severely Injured in Violent Pit Bull Attack...
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.