Posted on February 19, 2013 by Colleen Lynn

2013 Dog Bite Fatality: 'Nightmare' Pit Bull Kills Uvalde County Boy

Parents of Isaiah Aguilar: Lisa Gonzales and Richard Aguilar.

History of Killing
UPDATE 02/19/13: Fox 29 reports (in the video) what we had suspected. There were two pit bulls in the neighbor's yard (See: related photo). The news group also reported that the female pit bull that attacked and killed Isaiah Aguilar had recently killed another pit bull. "The female that did this killed the Dad of the dogs," according to Isaiah's mother, Lisa Gonzales. She also said the animal ate most of her own puppies. "That dog attacked its own litter … and my son," Gonzales said.

02/18/13: Pit Bull Kills Young Boy
Sabinal, TX - In a developing story, a 2-year old boy was killed Saturday by a relative's pit bull. Isaiah Aguilar was playing with a balloon outside his home when the wind blew it into a backyard next door, according to police. When he went to retrieve the balloon, he came face-to-face with a female pit bull tied up in the yard. The dog viciously attacked the boy. The boy's sibling said that someone inside the home opened the door during the attack, but did not help the boy.1

By the time the boy's father, Richard Aguilar, reached him he was no longer breathing. A neighbor in the area performed CPR as the boy's family waited for police to arrive. The child was transported to a hospital in nearby Uvalde, but did not survive his injuries. The pit bull is currently being held in quarantine in Uvalde. Isaiah's mother, Lisa Gonzales, told police she was heartbroken that nobody came to help her son. "I just want all this to be a nightmare," she said.

View the DogsBite.org Google Map: Texas Fatal Pit Bull Maulings.

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1Remember, in Texas, you can't watch your dog attack and "do nothing."

Photo: KSAT.com

Posted on January 25, 2013 by Colleen Lynn

West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals Upholds Town of Ceredo's Pit Bull Ban

High Court Upholds Pit Bull Ban
Charleston, WV - In a memorandum decision filed January 14, the highest court in West Virginia affirmed the constitutionality of a breed-specific ordinance that prohibited the ownership of pit bull terriers in the Town of Ceredo. In the decision, the high court affirmed the order of Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Darrell Pratt, who had affirmed the Municipal Court of Ceredo's conviction of three defendants for the possession of pit bulls within the boundaries of Ceredo.

The defendants were convicted by the municipal court on November 12, 2009 and each fined $162 plus costs. They appealed to the Wayne County Circuit Court arguing that the ordinance was "unconstitutional in that it is arbitrary and unreasonable." At the circuit court hearing, defendant Glenna Pelfrey failed to appear. Her appeal was dismissed and her conviction affirmed. The circuit court then ruled on the constitutionality of the Town of Ceredo's pit bull ordinance.

Circuit Court's Findings:

"That each Defendant’s dogs are of the breed that is typically referred to generically as pit bull dogs which are aggressive by nature, have been known as attack animals with strong massive heads and jaws, and have been found to represent a public health hazard. The majority of jurisdictions have accepted the proposition that dogs of this type have a propensity to be aggressive and attack without provocation and it is well established that such dogs have gotten a lot of notoriety of being dangerous to public health and safety."
"That in the State of West Virginia, a municipality has the authority to pass an ordinance to promote the safety of its citizens and to prevent risk of harm to its citizens which is a legitimate exercise of their police powers as granted by the West Virginia Legislature in Chapter 8 Article 12 of the West Virginia Code."
"The ownership, maintenance and control of dogs or other animals within city limits is a local concern which does not exceed the limitations of the home rule doctrine."
"That § 505.16 of the Codified Ordinances of the Town of Ceredo is legitimate, specific, rationally related to that legitimate interest and exercises the constitutional powers of the municipality to impose safety regulations to insure the health, protection and welfare of the citizens."
"That the ordinance is not constitutionally vague nor does it violate the due process of the Defendants because the owners may by limited by and subject to the City’s legitimate exercise of police powers by living inside the city limits."
"That the conviction of each Defendant was based upon the evidence that these were pit bull dogs, they were within the city limits, and they were owned, harbored or maintained by each of the defendants within the jurisdiction and based upon the same the Court finds that there was no violation of due process."

Defendants Steve Hardwick and Sharon Nalley1 appealed the circuit court's order to the state Supreme Court. The Prosecuting Attorney for the Town of Ceredo, Lora L. Lake, filed the response to the appeal and successfully argued the circuit course case.

Supreme Court of Appeals:

After careful consideration of the parties’ arguments, this Court concludes
that the circuit court did not abuse its discretion in denying petitioners’ appeal. Having reviewed the circuit court’s “Order” entered
on June 7, 2011, we hereby adopt and incorporate the circuit court’s well-reasoned findings and conclusions as to the assignment of error
raised in this appeal. The Clerk is directed to attach a copy of the circuit court’s order to this memorandum decision.

For the foregoing reasons, we find no error in the decision of the circuit court and its June 7, 2011 order denying petitioners’ appeal is affirmed.

The State of West Virginia now joins eleven other U.S. states and the District of Columbia where appellate courts have affirmed the constitutionality of a breed-specific pit bull ordinance. These states include: Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, New Mexico, Ohio, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin. (Kudos to Prosecuting Attorney Lora Lake, Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Darrell Pratt and the concurring Supreme Court of Appeals Justices.)

See full decision: Steve Hardwick and Sharon Nalley v. Town of Ceredo

1West Virginia pit bull owners can thank Hardwick and Nalley for successfully paving the way for new West Virginia municipalities to adopt similar pit bull ordinances without fear of constitutional challenges in these areas.

Posted on January 22, 2013 by Colleen Lynn

2013 Dog Bite Fatality: Dog Mauls Grandmother to Death While Babysitting Toddler

Daughter Recounts Attack
UPDATE 05/01/14: On May 1, 2014, Ruth Todd Halleran, Betty Todd's daughter, provided an account of the vicious attack that killed her mother to DaxtonsFriends.com. Fatal pit bull maulings are horrific and Halleran does not leave anything out. She also describes her wonderful childhood with her mother. Halleran last sees Betty alive on January 6, 2013. Two days later, she would receive a call from her brother, "I’m so sorry Ruthie. My momma is gone. The dog killed her."

Betty Anne Chapman Todd – Killed by the family pit bull while babysitting her grandchildren
By Ruth Todd Halleran
...I missed a call from my baby brother on January 8, 2013, then got a “911 call now” text from him. My initial thoughts were to pray that the children were safe, then I worried about his wife and prayed she was safe. I called him and could tell immediately something was horribly wrong. He yelled out that Mom was dead, his dog had killed Mom. I was very confused (who the heck hears about a dog killing anyone, much less a grown woman). My brothers are very good at practical jokes, and I had JUST seen my mother, there was no way something so unheard of, so appalling, had happened. I scolded my baby brother for using mother for the base of his sick joke. He sobbed into the phone, saying he was so sorry. “I’m so sorry Ruthie. I’m so sorry baby. Momma. Momma is gone. My momma is gone. The dog killed her.” I don’t recall everything I said to my baby brother. I remember falling to my knees and my son’s friend appearing before me. I remember feeling like I needed to time warp to my brother. I had to get to him immediately -- right away...

Read account in full »

01/21/13: Dog-Aggressive Pit Bull
Despite claims by the dog owner's brother-in-law, David Todd, that the family pit bull had "never shown any aggression before" and that the family "had the dog four years, and it never ever showed anything like this," it turns out the dog did have a history of dog aggression, and within the household. Further, the family pit bull fatally attacked 65-year old Betty Todd on January 8, just days (or possibly hours) after being neutered in the hopes of reducing the animal's aggression.1

The January 8 attack on 65-year-old Betty Anne Chapman Todd was by a family pet. Initially, authorities believed that the animal had no previous history of violence, but officials say that, through the course of the investigation, they discovered that the pit bull responsible for Todd’s death had killed another family pet, a siberian husky, just four months prior to the attack on Todd. Authorities say that, following that incident, the dog’s owner had the dog neutered the first week of January to take away its aggression. -Brian King, GwdToday.com, January 17, 2013

01/09/13: Victim Knew Dog Well
Additional details have been released about the death of Betty Todd. Officials say Betty Todd was watching her grandchildren at her son's home when the family pit bull attacked. She was babysitting while her son and his wife went out to dinner. One of the three children called their parents alerting them to the attack and the parents contacted 911. When deputies arrived at the home, they were met with a black and white pit bull that had blood on its mouth, chest and paws.

When EMS was able to reach the victim, they found Todd unresponsive. She had puncture wounds to her head, face and neck. Todd's son told deputies that his mother had been to his home on numerous occasions and around the animal without the dog ever showing aggression toward her, according to officials. The victim’s brother-in-law, David Todd, told reporters, "the dog slept in the bed with them," referring to the children. He called Todd's death a "tragic accident."

View Related video2

01/09/13: Woman Killed by Dog
Hodges, SC - In a developing story, Greenwood County deputies say a 65-year old woman was mauled to death by a dog Tuesday while babysitting a toddler at a home in Hodges. Another child in the home called 911 to report the attack and that the other people in the home had gotten out safely. Officers found the pit bull (bit pull) with blood on it in the home and the body of Betty Todd. The dog's owner was able to coral the animal into a room until animal control arrived.

View the DogsBite.org Google Map: South Carolina Fatal Pit Bull Maulings.

1Whether or not neutering a male dog lessens what humans term "aggression" is much debated. Neutering, however, is generally agreed to be very important in reducing sexually related aggression (male dog-on-male dog). Also, if neutering is not done at an early age, less than a year old, there's no surety that even that type of aggression will be lessened. The pit bull in this case was at least 4-years old.
2Angy Hall of the Greenwood Humane Society said the dog was "protecting his family" which "any dog would do." Yet, the victim was the 65-year old grandmother of these children who had babysat numerous times before. The consistent and painfully false excuses the humane community provides after a fatal pit bull mauling are horrific.

Posted on January 21, 2013 by Colleen Lynn

2013 Dog Bite Fatality: Chained Pit Bull Kills Boy in Montgomery County, Texas

Christian Gormanous, 4-years old, was killed by his neighbor's chained pit bull.

Sister Helped Boy
UPDATE 01/20/13: More information has been released about the 4-year old boy killed by a chained pit bull. Christian Gormanous was playing with his 9-year old sister, Trinity, in their backyard when he climbed over a chain link fence into his neighbor's yard. Though the dog was chained, it was still within reach of the boy. The animal attacked the boy. Trinity was able to get her brother away from the dog; brought him back over the fence then told her mother what happened.

At the time of incident, their mother was inside the home feeding her newborn baby. The mother's friends say that she was horrified by the attack and quickly called 911. Emergency responders airlifted the boy to a Houston hospital, but he did not survive his injuries. Close friends now surround the devastated family, less one child. No information was provided about the dog's owner or if the family knew the dog's owner. Animal control officers took custody of the pit bull.

He was a sweet little boy who liked to dress up as Spiderman,” said Debra Dreyer, a family friend whose grandson played at Christian’s house. Photographs show a child wearing a superhero costume for Halloween.
“He was a happy, very happy, very loved, sweet, little boy,” Dreyer said.
On Saturday afternoon, Christian Gormanous’ mother Janell — who’s been caring for a newborn baby — left her 4-year-old son in their backyard with his 9-year-old sister. The boy did what boys often do: He climbed the fence and walked into a neighbor’s yard.

Waiting in the neighbor’s backyard was a dangerous dog, a chained pit bull.

The dog attacked the boy who’d wandered into the yard, savagely biting him until his sister Trinity came to his rescue. - KHOU, January 20, 2013

01/20/13: Pit Bull Kills Boy
Montgomery County, TX - A young boy died after being attacked by a neighbor's pit bull on Saturday. Deputies with the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office were dispatched to a home in the 5700 block of Pinehurst involving a 4-year old boy that had been bitten by a pit bull. Investigators learned the boy had climbed a chain link fence into a neighbor's yard and was seriously injured by a chained pit bull. Christian Gormanous was airlifted to a Houston hospital where he later died.

View the DogsBite.org Google Map: Texas Fatal Pit Bull Maulings.

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In 2019, his mother Janell sang a tribute for him: "Singing to my precious son Christian"

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