Posted on August 18, 2008 by Colleen Lynn

2008 Dog Bite Fatality: Detroit Man Killed by Stray Pit Bull Attacking Dog

Robert Howard, estimated to be 35-years old, was killed by a fighting pit bull.

Victim Tried to Help
Detroit, MI - A Detroit man died1 Thursday after he was bitten by a reported fighting pit bull on Mack Avenue and Lakepointe Street. Police said a woman came out of her home when she saw a stray pit bull attacking her dogs. When the woman tried to stop the attack, the pit bull started coming toward her. Robert Howard came out of his house to help the woman, when the pit bull turned on him, fatally biting him in the calf. Howard's friend, Isaiah Brown, describes the attack:

      A Detroit man died Thursday after he was bitten by a fighting pit bull on Mack Avenue and Lakepointe Street.
      Police said a woman came out of her home when she saw a stray pit bull attacking her dogs.
      When the woman tried to stop the attack, the pit bull started coming toward her.
      Robert Howard came out of his house to help the woman, when the pit bull turned on him and bit him in the calf.
      "The dog had tore into his calf and when he let go, he just snatched and pulled all the arteries out. He was lying on the steps, and when I checked his vital signs he was already dead then," said Howard's friend Isaiah Brown.
      Police said the dog bit a main artery in Howard's leg and he later died of his injuries. ClickOnDetroit, August 15, 2008

Witnesses interviewed by ClickOnDetroit said that loose fighting dogs (pit bulls) are a problem in their Detroit neighborhood and believe this pit bull to be one. Yet according to the ASPCA and pit bull advocates, fighting dogs do not attack human beings. Dogfighters allegedly "culled man-biters" from their bloodlines, despite the fact that famous fighting bloodlines such as, Bolio, Chinaman, Zebo and others are widely known to encompass man-biters and man-eaters.

1Pit bull advocates often say that fatal pit bull attacks are reported more than any other fatal dog attack. This is entirely untrue. The story of Robert Howard was reported by a single media outlet. What is true is that pit bulls fatally attack more humans than all other dog breeds combined every year.

Posted on July 28, 2008 by Colleen Lynn

2008 Dog Bite Fatality: Tulsa Infant Killed by Labrador Puppy

Linzy Earles, the mother of 2-month old boy mauled to death by family dog.

Manslaughter Charges archived
UPDATE 11/04/08: Linzy Earles, who turned 18-years old last month, has been charged with second-degree manslaughter in a juvenile court in connection with the mauling death of her baby, 2-month old Zane Alen Earles. The Tulsa police affidavit states that Zane "was left unattended in an infant swing on the opposite side of the house for approximately two hours." In this time, the family's 8-week old lab-mix, "that was left loose in the house ate the two-month-old victim."

Fransein’s order states that Earles was previously adjudicated as a delinquent child. A police affidavit states that Earles “has had a history of drug abuse and she was just taken off probation on June 2” in a drug-related matter.
Second-degree manslaughter involves an accusation of “culpable negligence” — an omission to do something that a reasonably careful person would do or failure to use ordinary care and caution.
“We feel that if not for her culpable negligence, it would have been prevented,” Cain said. - Bill Braun, Tulsa World, November 4, 2008

08/05/08: Neglect Charges Filed
A police affidavit alleges child neglect by the 17-year-old mother whose 2-month old son was mauled to death by a family pet. Tulsa Police allege that Linzy Earles has a history of drug abuse and was neglectful when her baby, Zane Earles, was killed by a dog at the home of his mother and grandparents on July 28. Police responded to a call about a dog mauling at the home. When officers arrived, they found the baby had been left unattended in a baby swing for about two hours.

Investigators have been granted a warrant to test the mother's hair and take a blood sample to determine whether she was under the influence of alcohol or narcotics at the time of her son's death, and to possibly explain why "she was unable to wake up to hear her baby's screams prior to her baby's death,” according to an affidavit.
Police plan to conduct a decibel sound test in the home to find out whether any screams from the infant should have been heard when he was being attacked by the puppy, the affidavit states. Tests will be conducted inside the house to find any possible body fluids left at the scene by the puppy "tracked through the residence after eating the victim."- Johnny Johnson, The Oklahoman, August 6, 2008

07/30/08: Mother Only 17-Years Old
Authorities identified the 2-month old baby as Zane Alen Earles. Police have not released the names of his parents or his grandparents. Tulsa police spokesman Leland Ashley said the dog was taken to an animal shelter after the attack and euthanized. Ashley said the mother found her son dead in an infant swing about 10:30 am Monday. The child's body was taken to the state medical examiner's office, where the cause of death is pending, said Randy Saffell, a spokesman for the office.

The child's father and grandfather left the home, 2904 E 102, at 8 and 8:30 a.m. Monday, Ashley said. Before the grandfather left, he put the infant in a swing in a dining room at the east end of the south Tulsa home. The infant's mother and grandmother were asleep in their bedrooms at the west end of the home.

Ashley declined to release the parents' names, but said the infant's father is 18 and the mother is 17.
Authorities think Earles was bitten numerous times by the black Labrador puppy. - Sheila Stogsdill, The Oklahoman, July 30, 2008

07/28/08: Baby Killed by Family Dog
Tulsa, OK - In a developing story, it appears another family dog has attacked and killed an infant. In this instance, the victim was a 2-month-old baby in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Police said the infant was mauled to death by a young Labrador this morning. The child died at the scene. Officer Jason Willingham says the baby's mother and grandmother were home at the time, but nobody was in the room when the attack occurred. He says the child was left in a swing.

Posted on July 25, 2008 by Colleen Lynn

2008 Dog Bite Fatality: 1-Year Old Erie Girl Killed by Family Dog

Addison Sonney, 14-months old, was attacked and killed by her family's dog.

Family Dog Kills Child
Erie, PA - A 1-year-old girl has died after being attacked by her family dog. The Allegheny County medical examiner said Addison Sonney died yesterday at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. The girl's mother, Kari Sonney, was treated at a hospital for injuries suffered trying to save Addison. Police followed the dog into a nearby neighborhood and shot and killed it. The attack happened yesterday at the Laurel Hill Cemetery in Millcreek. The child's father is the cemetery caretaker.

The dog fled after the vicious attack. Millcreek police had to hunt the dog down with guns drawn. At first through dense thicket at the corner of Love and Zimmerly roads, where they shot it five times. The dog continued to flee, reports the Erie Times News, eventually into a wealthy nearby subdivision. Officers told children and people outside on the Sunday morning to go inside their home. The dog eventually took refuge on a porch on Cristina Drive, where police shot and killed it.

The dog, which police said was an old English sheepdog mix, was tracked down and shot dead by Millcreek officers.

Samples of the dog's remains have been sent to the state Department of Agriculture for rabies testing. Those results are expected today.

Addison was attacked at her family's home, the Laurel Hill Cemetery caretaker's cottage, 4523 Love Road, just after 10 a.m. Thursday. Her father, Brady Sonney, is the grounds supervisor at Laurel Hill, and the family lives in the cottage.

Addison's mother, Kari Sonney, also was injured in the attack. She was treated at Hamot Medical Center and released.

"She was trying to protect her daughter," Millcreek police Lt. Michael Tesore said of Kari Sonney.

Tesore said the two were in the home's living room when the attack occurred. He said investigators did not know what provoked the attack. - Kara Rhodes, Erie Times News, July 25, 2008

Posted on July 24, 2008 by Colleen Lynn

2008 Dog Bite Fatality: Mississippi 3-Year Old Boy Killed by Neighbor's Chained Pit Bull

Tony Evans Jr., 3-years old, was killed by his neighbor's chained pit bull.

Pit Bull Kills Child
Jackson, MS - A 3-year-old boy was killed Tuesday night in south Jackson after he was grabbed and mauled by a neighbor's chained pit bull. Tony Evans Jr was transported to the University of Mississippi Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. No one else was injured in the attack. Police spokesman Sgt. Jeffery Scott said police had to shoot the animal in self-defense. The pit bull survived the shooting and was taken into custody by the animal control unit.

      Tony was last seen playing with a group of children across the street at the home of Shannon Reason. So, they knocked on his door to ask whether he'd seen the toddler.
      He hadn't, but a while later Reason walked under his carport and made a chilling discovery: Tony's lifeless body next to his white male pit bull named Blue Eyes.
      The search ended in screams for help. But Tony Evans Jr., 3, was dead ...
      No one heard the attack. Police said the dog clamped down on Tony's neck and upper torso and dragged him inside a doghouse.
      When police responded Tuesday night, Blue Eyes charged them, causing officers to open fire. The dog survived and is under quarantine. The 2 1/2-year-old pit bull will be observed for 10 days before officials decide whether it should be euthanized. - Mark Bonner, Clarion-Ledger, July 24, 2008

During a news conference, Assistant Police Chief Gerald Jones said the owner of the dog didn’t violate any city ordinances because the dog was chained and confined to the property. Animal control will conduct an investigation to determine if
the dog is dangerous, he said. If the dog is designated as dangerous, the pit
bull can be euthanized or the owner will be required to follow stipulations in the city's dangerous dog ordinance, Jones said. Police continue to investigate.

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