Posted on November 9, 2009 by Colleen Lynn

2009 Dog Bite Fatality: 16-Month Old Killed by Pit Bull of Babysitter's "Boyfriend"

Pit bull owner Jerry Westmoreland, has a "pit bull memorial" painted on his vehicle.

"Boyfriend's" Pit Bull
UPDATE 11/09/09: The New Albany Gazette published an update to the fatal pit bull mauling of Destiny Marie Knox. At the time of the attack, Destiny was under the care of her babysitter Tonya Graham. According to Union County Sheriff Tommy Wilhite, Graham and Knox were at Graham's boyfriend's residence, the home of Jerry Westmoreland, when the incident occurred. The offending pit bull, named Foolish, was shot and killed at the scene by a police officer.

The mother of the victim is Nicole Howard and the father of the baby girl is Detrick Knox. In regards to possible charges, Wilhite told reporters, "We have not been able to prove any neglect and haven’t established a criminal violation at this time." Charges, if any, will be determined in the March term of the grand jury. Westmoreland, who has a "pit bull memorial" painted on his vehicle, surrendered his four remaining pit bulls to the Oxford Humane Society.

11/07/09: Dog Was "Very Healthy, Very Stout"
New information concerning the death of Destiny Marie Knox has been released. The pit bull owner had a total of five pit bulls, one of which "slipped its collar" and chain and entered into the owner's home. The dog quickly attacked the toddler, who had not been left unattended as previously reported. Investigators found no signs that the pit bull had ever been mistreated. Chief Deputy Jimmy Whitten said, "This dog was very healthy, very stout. It was well-kept, well-groomed."

According to Whitten, Union County had not had a fatal dog attack in his memory, but he and fellow officers said vicious dogs are a frequent problem. Sheriff's Investigator Anthony Anderson said he'd favor a ban on pit bulls and other vicious breeds. "Every dog bite case I've worked at the hospital has involved a pit bull," he said. Investigator Roger Garner agreed. "When I was at Tupelo and we had attacks by dogs, almost 100 percent of the time it was by a pit bull or some pit mix," he said.

Both Whitten and Anderson believe that state legislators need to look at the growing pit bull problem and take action to prevent future maulings.

11/06/09: Victim Named: Destiny Marie Knox
Union County Coroner Mark Golding has released the identity of the Union County toddler killed by her babysitter's pit bull Thursday evening in the Martintown community. Golding identified the 16-month old child as Destiny Marie Knox. According to Union County Sheriff Tommy Wilhite, sheriff’s deputies are continuing their investigation into the killing. No other names of people involved, including the babysitter, have been released.

The child was killed at the home of its babysitter when the babysitter’s chained pit bull "slipped out of its collar" and followed the people into the house as they unloaded groceries. A 19-year old man in the house tried to stop the attack, but by the time sheriff’s deputies arrived the child was dead. The pit bull was later killed by sheriff’s deputies, presumably by gun fire.

"It’s devastating anytime you have the loss of a child," said Sheriff’s Investigator Anthony Anderson. "Especially in these circumstances, where the child was mutilated, it’s devastating."

The vehicle identified as belonging to the owner of the pit bull bears a "pit bull memorial." The dog, named Bam Bam, is apparently a former pit bull owned by the person. Two of the lines in its poem state, "But some of you don't like me, I'm sure I don't know why. The only thing I'm guilty of is courage, love and try." (Read full poem.) This pit bull owner is a "classic pit bull advocate" who undoubtedly stated on many occasions: "My dog would only lick you to death."

11/06/09: Child Killed by Babysitter's Pit Bull
New Albany, MS - In a developing story, a 16-month old child was attacked and killed by a pit bull in Union County on Thursday, November 5. Union County Sheriff Tommy Wilhite said a family was babysitting the child and left the child unattended in a room when the dog attacked. The incident happened on County Road 87 about 5:30 p.m. A 19-year old, who was at the home at the time, hit the pit bull and stabbed it several times trying to get it off the toddler.

This death marks the third death of a child by a pit bull mauling in less than two weeks. Each of these instances involved a "babysitter."

Posted on October 29, 2009 by Colleen Lynn

2009 Dog Bite Fatality: Toddler Wanders from Babysitter's Home; Killed by Pit Bull

Matthew Hurt, 2-years old, was killed by a neighbor's chained pit bull in Prescott.

Attacked His Throat
UPDATE 10/29/09: New information has been reported about the death of Matthew Hurt. According to a KTHV video, family and friends1 said the boy saw a puppy and chased it to a backyard where a pit bull was chained. Matthew's 3-year old brother followed him, then rushed home to alert the family. Neighbor Bridgette Monroe, who tried to help, described the horrible scene, "The babies' jugular, throat was bitten and from his mouth up to his eye was bitten."

Authorities seized two adult pit bulls from the dog owner's home2, one of which was male. Though not stated in the article, it's likely that the puppy Matthew had been chasing came from a litter of the two pit bulls. Richard Ray Smith, whose mother owns the dogs, said, "The dog has been raised with us and all the kids have played with the dog. It's not a violent dog, we don't know what happened." Smith added, "We don't want the family to be mad at us, it's just an accident."

But two adult chained pit bulls, likely part of a backyard breeding operation, that wind up severely injuring or killing a child is far from an accident. The situation is a ruinous attack only waiting to happen. Chief Brian Russell said police and emergency crews arrived within minutes and the boy was airlifted to St. Michael's where he was pronounced dead. "There very well could be charges either way," Russell said. "We'll just have to see where the investigation goes from here."

10/28/09: 2-Year Old Killed By Chained Pit Bull
Prescott, AR - Five days following the fatal pit bull mauling of 17-month old Colton Smith at his babysitter's home, two-year old Matthew Clayton Hurt of Prescott, Arkansas is also dead by a pit bull. Matthew arrived at his babysitter's home just before 10 am this morning. At some point, the boy wandered a few blocks away and into a backyard where a pit bull was chained. The dog savagely attacked the toddler. A woman walking nearby tried to help, but it was too late.

Little two year old Matthew Hurt was at his babysitter's just before 10 this morning. Matthew wandered 4 blocks away, into the backyard where the pit bull was chained but still managed to attack, killing him

A lady was walking nearby and asked for help after she saw the child in the backyard, they ran to see what was going on...but it was too late.

As you can imagine, the people nearby were disturbed and very shaken up after their discovery.

"He wasn't moving at all he was bitten all on his throat across his face just limp," Bridgette Monroe said. - KSLA-TV

1Matthew and his two siblings stayed with Kevin Taylor and Christy Godwin while their mom worked. The couple was afraid of the dogs and told the dogs' owner they were vicious in the past.
2The loose puppy of an unnamed breed has still not been caught.

Posted on October 27, 2009 by Colleen Lynn

2009 Dog Bite Fatality: 19-Month Old Boy Killed by Pit Bull-Mix at Babysitter's Home

Colten Smith, 17-months old, was killed by a pit bull-mix while under the care of a babysitter.

Future In-Law's Dog
UPDATE 10/27/09: Sheriff's Deputies confirmed that the 65-pound pit bull named Max did not belong to the babysitter, rather she had been "watching it" for a week for her future in-law's. This is despite the fact that a KMPH video shows a "Warning Security Dog" sign hanging on the babysitter's fence with rusted screws. A preliminary autopsy released Tuesday confirmed that Smith's death was a result of loss of blood due to a puncture wound to the subclavian artery.

Sheriff's Deputies say there are "no plans" to arrest the babysitter at this time. The case though will be sent to the District Attorney's office.

'Non Bite' Pit Bull Injury Leads to Death of Plainfield AC Officer

Plainfield Animal Control Officer died after being knocked to the ground by a pit bull.

Officer Theresa Foss
Plainfield, CT - An incident that raises questions regarding what defines a "fatal dog attack" recently occurred in Connecticut. On September 29, Plainfield Animal Control Officer Theresa Foss was hospitalized with a head injury after being knocked to the ground by a pit bull. Foss had responded to a call of an aggressive dog that had trapped a family in their home. A resident of the home, Ron Roberts, shot the dog several times after it attacked Foss, causing the dog to flee.

News articles were quick to point out the loose pit bull, named Buddy, had not bitten Officer Foss. The owner of the dog, David Coombs, told reporters "he had no idea" the trouble Buddy had caused when the dog returned to his home at 180 Moosup Pond Road the following morning. Though news reports emphasized that the dog had not torn Foss' flesh, Coombs took the unusual step of shooting Buddy to death then burying the animal in Canterbury, about 4 miles away.1

Local authorities did not attempt to locate the buried dog, because the incident did not involve a bite.2 A bite would have required a rabies test.

Up until Foss' death on October 8, she remained hospitalized at Yale-New Haven Hospital with a serious head injury. While it could have been an error on his part, Charles Gagne, of Gagne-Piechowski Funeral Home, said that Foss' death was unrelated to the dog. This appears to be impossible, as Foss never left the hospital after the attack. State Animal Control Officer Linda Wenner later told reporters that Foss "died of organ failure," begging the question as to why?

Two Heart Attack Victims in 10-Day Period

Foss' death comes during the same 10-day period when two people suffered a heart attack following a terrifying "pit bull incident," thus highlighting the graveness of "non bite" pit bull injuries.

On October 2, 70-year old Mary Garcia of Adams County, Colorado was attacked by two dogs, a pit bull-mastiff mix and boxer-pit bull mix, when she stepped outside to lock her car doors. Garcia suffered serious bite injuries in the attack, but the immediate threat was a heart attack that struck after the incident.
On October 11, 56-year old Timothy Neimeyer of Indianapolis hopped a fence to stop a fight between his pit bull and a neighbor's dog. The pit bull broke its chain and jumped a fence to attack the dog. While trying to stop the fight, Neimeyer went into cardiac arrest. His condition is listed as "grave" in news reports.

1Combs was ticketed for dog nuisance, allowing a dog to roam and failure to license. He was fined $242.
2For all we know, Buddy could have been shipped across state lines to live with a friend or relative of Coombs.

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