Posted on December 8, 2011 by Colleen Lynn

2011 Dog Bite Fatality: White County Man Mauled to Death by Pet Pit Bull

Joseph Hines, 58-years old of Burnettsville, was killed by his pet pit bull.

Defensive Injuries
UPDATE 12/08/11: New details have been released in the fatal dog mauling of Joseph Hines. The coroner said the man died when his pit bull bit into his jugular vein. He had defensive bite wounds on his forearms too, showing that he had tried to fend off the animal. Neighbor Brad Holcomb said the victim was always friendly and that his dog was as well. Authorities have no idea why the "healthy and in good shape" pit bull suddenly attacked and killed its owner -- unpredictable.

12/07/11: Autopsy Confirmation
Burnettsville, IN - An autopsy performed Wednesday confirmed that a White County man died after being mauled by his pet pit bull. A family member discovered 58-year old Joseph D. Hines Monday night, according to Sgt. Kim Riley. Hines lived on the family member's farm in east Burnettsville. The person became concerned after not seeing Hines outside, as he normally would. Authorities believe Hines died on Saturday. The autopsy found no underlying medical condition.

Posted on December 8, 2011 by Colleen Lynn

2011 Dog Bite Fatality: Woman Dies Following Attack by Pet Pit Bull Last Month

Tonia Parks, 39-years old, died after being attacked by one of her pit bulls.

Pit Bull Blamed
UPDATE 12/07/11: The Star updated the original article clarifying several details. Tonia Parks was mauled to death by one of her two pit bulls, each 8-years old, as she underwent a seizure in her home November 18. Parks remained in critical care until she was pronounced dead Tuesday at Rockford Memorial Hospital. The other dog attacked the pit bull that was mauling Parks. Both dogs are scheduled to be euthanized tomorrow; no one came forward to claim the animals.1

12/07/11: Dog Owner Dies After Attack
Rockford, IL - In a developing story, the owner of two dogs died Tuesday following a combination of a serious dog attack and seizure that occurred in November. According to the coroner, 39-year old Tonia Parks suffered a seizure while trying to break up a fight between her dogs. She also sustained dog bite injuries to her head, neck and jugular vein. The dogs were initially described as pit bulls in the police report; some media outlets now are describing them as American bulldogs.

Interestingly, The Register Star quickly submitted a Freedom of Information Act request about Parks' death. The reason for this is unclear, but given that the newspaper seeks information about the "breed of the dogs," the "fate of the animals," and "details of the incident," it seems probable that the news group hopes to free the pit bull breed of yet another death attributed to them in 2011.2 Including the death of Parks, pit bulls are responsible for 68% of fatal dog attacks this year.

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

1The Freedom of Information Act request was removed from the updated article.
2Conversely, The Star may be trying to wade through false claims made by pit bull advocates, such as false breed claims and potentially false causes of death. Who can forget Darla Napora, whose beloved pit bull killed her and her unborn child back in August? Quickly after her death, members of the pit bull community began spreading a rumor that Darla died due to falling from a ladder.

Posted on November 17, 2011 by Colleen Lynn

2011 Dog Bite Fatality: Houston Woman Dies from Injuries After Pit Bull Mauling

Edna Dyson and her two daughters, Regina and Lawanda.

Edna Dyson
Houston, TX - A Houston woman severely mauled by two pit bulls last week died from her injuries Tuesday. Click2houston.com reports that 71-year old Edna Dyson died November 15 after police say two pit bulls attacked her last week. She was in ICU for nearly a week. Specifically, "Investigators say two pit bulls dug a hole under a fence and got out. They mauled Mrs. Edna. She crawled to her car and waited for help. Lawanda says her Mom was scared of those dogs."

Because the dogs' owner was "in the process" of putting up a fence and because they euthanized the dogs, Harris County District Attorney's Office says they will likely not file any charges. Edna's husband, Billy Dyson, and her two daughters, Regina Dyson and Lawanda Dyson Lindsey, called her death a "homicide" and are devastated that no one will be held accountable. Edna was a teacher for Houston Independent School District (HISD) for 33 years and a basketball coach.

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

Posted on October 15, 2011 by Colleen Lynn

DogsBite.org Turns Four Years Old

DogsBite.org - October 15, 2011 marks the fourth year that DogsBite.org has been operating on the World Wide Web, documenting statistics and providing resources to help prevent serious dog attacks. Later today, the founder will be talking to a journalist in Australia about recent events in that country. DogsBite.org is the only resource of its kind in America and possibly throughout the world. The pit bull problem is a world problem and over 30 countries regulate this dog breed.

Four years ago today, DogsBite.org made its awareness known to the world in the month of October, near simultaneous to the initiation of an annual Pit Bull Awareness Day. None of us have the luxury of choosing our birthday; we didn't either. But our birth date is appropriate. DogsBite.org has greatly helped journalists, doctors, lawyers, lawmakers and the public become more "aware" of pit bulls and the danger presented by their selectively bred traits for illegal dogfighting.

Gratitude from Readers

From time-to-time, readers send us powerful letters about the positive and even life-saving impact DogsBite.org has had upon their lives. Over the course of the next few weeks, we will gather as many as possible and place them onto a web page. Some letters will be blogged to gain wider readership. Persons who would like to submit a letter of thanks can email [email protected] or write to our mailing address. We ask that submitters allow us to publish their first name and state along with their words. Letters can address DogsBite.org or its founder, Colleen Lynn.

Recent Letter of Thanks

You can't imagine how glad I am that I stumbled across your web site. A couple of friends of mine have pit bulls and I had been considering getting one. I have been researching the breed for a couple of years and most of the things I have read have been on the sites of advocates. I began to buy into the notion that "it's all in how you raise them". After hearing this from a number of sources I figured I ought to get as much information as possible before getting a pit bull. I wanted to be sure I was knowledgeable enough to properly "socialize" the dog. The only thing that held me back was the fact that despite the proper socialization and training by pit bull owners, some dogs still attacked people. I just could not reconcile what the advocates were saying with the facts. As I was researching the breed looking for the right formula to understand this issue I came across your web site. What an eye opener. I realized that what my intuition was telling me was right. There is something wrong with what these people are saying. Your web site provided the information I needed to set my thinking straight. Thank you for what you are doing. It must be difficult to preserver in the face of such illogical and persistent opposition. I am firmly in your camp and will do all I can to prevent the tragic events these awful animals cause.

Charles, Indiana
October 2011

Donations to DogsBite.org are tax-deductible
Help keep our mission of prevention alive by contributing today