Posted on January 28, 2021 by Colleen Lynn

Why Aren't Dangerous Dog Owners Charged With Animal Cruelty? by Dog Lover - Perspectives of Advocates

Guest Writer Dog Lover asks, "Why aren't dangerous dog owners charged with animal cruelty?" This editorial is part of our ongoing series: Perspectives of Advocates.

Every day I see news articles about pets and farm animals being mauled or killed by pit bulls or other dangerous dog breeds. Touching pictures of other people's pets or farm animals mauled or killed are often featured in the articles and never fail to bring tears to my eyes. When you read the details of the article, the attacking dog owners are seldom ticketed and rarely face criminal charges. Each time I read one of these articles detailing the suffering of the pet and the anguish of the victim's owner, I ask myself why the attacking dog owner was not charged with animal cruelty.

Two of my small dogs have been attacked by loose pit bulls. One of my small dogs was injured enough to necessitate $2,000 in vet bills, but fortunately survived and fully recovered. My other dog was so severely mauled that the emergency vet said that he had never seen a dog suffer such grievous injuries and still be alive. After reviewing the X-rays showing the extent of my beloved dog's internal injuries, I regretfully decided to have him euthanized. My dog was so weak from the injuries he had sustained from that brutal pit bull attack, the vet said he was already very near death when he was administering the drugs. I was heartbroken when my beloved companion took his last breath.

Both of my dogs suffered physically and emotionally from being attacked by someone else's pet. The dire consequence of one of those attacks was that my dog's life was stolen from him. How is that not considered animal cruelty? The attacking dog owners were not charged after either attack. They were not even ticketed for allowing their dogs to roam. I was told by the authorities that dog-on-dog attacks are considered civil and not criminal issues. That leaves the onus on the victim to hold the attacking dog owner accountable for vet and medical bills. The fact that a companion animal you loved and cherished was injured or killed as the result of a dangerous dog owner's negligence appeared to be irrelevant.

Many states and municipalities have included animal cruelty in their animal ordinances. But the animal cruelty statutes only seem to address neglect or cruelty toward an animal by its owner. The animal cruelty statutes don't address or are seldom applied to the cruelty suffered by pets or farm animals that are attacked by dogs owned by someone else. It is inconceivable to me that the suffering an animal experiences during a mauling by someone else's dog(s) is not just as cruel as neglect or mistreatment to an animal by its owner. When I asked the police officer why the dog owner wasn't charged with animal cruelty after my dog was fatally mauled, he shrugged and said that's not what they consider animal cruelty. I asked him why not and he said that it would be a matter of proving intent. It makes no sense to me why not controlling and containing one's dog and allowing it to roam and injure another animal wouldn't show intent.

The reason given by the authorities for why dog attacks on animals are considered civil matters instead of criminal is that dogs are considered property. That doesn’t make sense either considering that theft or vandalism of one’s property would result in the arrest of the perpetrator while an attack on one’s pet by someone’s dog is not. It is outrageous that the mauling or death of someone’s pet is considered less important in the view of the law than broken windows or a stolen TV set.

It also makes no sense that a dangerous dog owner is not charged with criminal trespass when their dog enters another person’s property and causes harm. Too often roaming dangerous dogs maul or kill pets in their own yards. Even worse, dangerous dogs too often enter other people’s homes by screen doors, windows or pet doors to harm or kill resident pets. If these types of home invasion attacks were taken seriously by the authorities, it would make sense to charge the dangerous dog owner with criminal trespass.

A commonality stated in news articles when loose dog(s) attack is that the attacking dog was loose because it "somehow" escaped. I'm always baffled by the use of the word "somehow" because it implies that dogs become loose for some unexplained or mystical reason instead of the failure of a dog owner to control and contain their pet(s). The fact that the dog is loose is considered an accident regardless of an attack on someone else's animal. The word "somehow" is even used when a dog has a history of being loose. Why are dangerous dog owners given a pass when the consequence of their failure to control and contain their dog results in the injury or death of someone's else’s animal?

I am also outraged when someone is charged with animal cruelty after defending themselves or their animals against someone else's dog that is attacking or menacing. It makes no sense that the fault is solely levied against the victim instead of the owner of the dog that was doing the attacking or menacing.

There were at least 46 reported dog attacks in the US in 2020 that resulted in a human fatality. There are numerous maulings every year from dog attacks where humans suffer a range of injuries from relatively minor to life-altering debilitation. I have been waiting since 2013 for these maulings and deaths of humans to cause widespread public outrage, but it never seems to happen. Since the death and injury to humans attacked by dogs is tolerated and mostly ignored by the authorities and the public, I guess I shouldn't be surprised when the injury or death of someone's pet is tolerated and ignored.

Dog attacks will continue to happen with increased frequency and severity if dangerous dog owners are not held criminally accountable. Holding a dangerous dog owner accountable and charging that person with animal cruelty and/or other criminal charges when their dog attacks another person's animal would be an important way to deter future attacks and increase public safety.

Note from DogsBite.org

As painful as Dog Lover's editorial is, it is important to state that animal cruelty laws are to punish people for their own actions, not the actions of their pets. Instead of stretching animal cruelty laws for this purpose, which comes with the onus of having to prove intent "beyond a reasonable doubt," there are laws, when enforced, that do address these issues.1 For example, the model Dangerous Dog Law and Irresponsible Dog Owner Law created by attorney Kenneth Phillips.

1Example of criminal intent: A person who possesses and trains dog(s) with the intent that such dog(s) engage in dogfighting can be charged with animal cruelty and animal fighting laws.

Posted on January 21, 2021 by Colleen Lynn

2021 Dog Bite Fatality: Mother Live Streams After Rescue Pit Bull Killed her Son in Hampton County, South Carolina

A 6-year old boy died after being attacked by a pit bull his mother was trying to rehome.

Police Release Statement
Hampton County, SC - An hour ago, the Hampton County Sheriff's Office released a statement. "On Wednesday afternoon, Hampton County Sheriff's Office deputies responded to a residence on Mullins Ford Rd. in Brunson regarding a juvenile being attacked by a dog. Upon arrival to the incident location, officers located the 6 yr. old male child, who was deceased. Hampton County Animal Control also responded to the scene. The dog, a Pit bull breed, was located a short time later, apprehended by Hampton County Animal Control and has been euthanized," police said.

About 18 hours ago, a grieving mother live streamed a message on Facebook explaining how a stray pit bull she had taken in killed her son. Victoria Rose LaBar, of South Carolina, said that "me and my family need some space right now." As I am "sure most of you have heard," LaBar said, "my 6-year old little boy was attacked early this afternoon by the pit bull that I had been trying to find a home for. It had been abandoned on our property." She also stated, "I was an advocate, supporter for pit bulls. What happened, happened so fast that there was nothing that anybody could do." LaBar said it will be at least a week before funeral arrangements can be made. The boy's father is named Cameron.

On January 15, LaBar posted about the pit bull she had taken in. By that time, she had already spent a week with the dog. "So I gave the owners an adamant amount of time, at this point I believe they ditched their Fur Baby on purpose. Having spent a week with this sweet boy, I CANNOT IMAGINE WHY!" LaBar feared taking the dog to a shelter would mean its death. One commenter even called out trail blazer Tallulah King McGee, the director of Beaufort County Animal Services (an adjacent county), who helped pass the first mandatory pit bull spaying and neutering ordinance in the Southern United states in 2015. Two jurisdictions in that county, Beaufort and the Town of Bluffton, followed suit and also adopted a similar mandatory pit bull sterilization ordinance.

"Happened So Fast"

Yes. Fatal attacks inflicted by pit bulls often occur in an instant and without warning. "Due to their failure to communicate intention before an attack -- pit bulls will attack without warning and will attack in the absence of species-specific signs," we wrote in our comments to the Department of Transportation last year. "A breed that consistently displays these traits -- failure to communicate intention before an attack, disinhibited aggression and a disproportionate response to stimuli."

Multiple appellate court decisions have remarked on this characteristic of the pit bull. Over 1000 jurisdictions in this country regulate pit bulls for these same reasons, along with jurisdictions in 53 countries worldwide. LaBar, a young mother who was an "advocate" for the breed, just learned first hand why these regulations exist. Nothing will bring her beloved son back. Moreover, the story of LaBar's son will not change the opinion or actions of other young female pit bull advocates.

They will simply tell themselves, "This will never happen to me." Welcome to 2021.

“The extreme dangerousness of this breed, as it has evolved today, is well recognized. Pit bulls as a breed are known to be extremely aggressive and have been bred as attack animals ... coupled with an unpredictable nature” (Matthews v. Amberwood, 1998) “The trial court also found that pit bulls tend to be stronger than other dogs, often give no warning signals before attacking, and are less willing than other dogs to retreat from an attack, even when they are in considerable pain,” (Colorado Dog Fanciers v. Denver, 1991) “The trial court was presented with evidence which established that the specific breeds targeted by the ordinance possess inherent characteristics of aggression, strength, viciousness and unpredictability not found in other dog breeds.” (Singer v. Cincinnati, 1990) “Pit bull dogs possess a strongly developed ’kill instinct’ not shared by other breeds of dogs. This testimony indicated that pit bull dogs are unique in their ’savageness and unpredictability.’” (Hearn v. City of Overland, 1989) “Pit Bulls also possess the quality of gameness ... which can be described as the propensity to catch and maul an attacked victim unrelentingly until death occurs, or as the continuing tenacity and tendency to attack repeatedly for the purpose of killing. It is clear that the unquantifiable, unpredictable aggressiveness and gameness of Pit Bulls make them uniquely dangerous. (Vanater v. Village of South Point, 1989) “The Village also presented evidence establishing that the American Pit Bull Terrier breed possesses inherent characteristics of aggression, strength, viciousness and unpredictability not found in any other breeds of dog.” (Garcia v. Village of Tijeras, 1988).

Image of the suspected fatally attacking rescue pit bull seen on the mother's Facebook page on Jan. 15. The dog killed LaBar's son five days later in Hampton County, South Carolina.

The mother's aunt commented on a Live 5 News thread after Tim James tried to claim the dog was not a pit bull. James is a typical lying pit bull advocate troll -- they are a dime a dozen!

The child's grandmother commented with sarcasm on this thread, where the Hampton County Animal Shelter director had been alerted about this dog two days before the deadly attack.

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

Baseline reporting requirements:
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.

Posted on January 20, 2021 by Colleen Lynn

Victim Shares Account of Vicious Pit Bull Attack on Christmas Day at Seahurst Park in Burien, Washington

The victim seen at the trauma center with a wound VAC to assist healing (negative pressure wound therapy). Commonly used for large surface area wounds, complex wounds and burn care.

Seattle, WA - Recently, an adult male victim sent in his account of a vicious attack by two large pit bulls that occurred on Christmas Day at Seahurst Park in Burien, Washington. What began as a day that most Americans treasure, and in this case, a day when the victim's wife was returning from traveling abroad, turned into a violent life or death struggle for Matthijs and his dog Menno. There were no media reports about this attack that left Matthijs with a traumatic head injury.

I am Matthijs van Leeuwen and on Christmas Day 2020 both myself and my dog Menno, a 45 lbs 11 year old Samoyed, were victims of an attack by two large pit bulls at Seahurst Park in Burien WA.

On Christmas Day my wife was returning from her visit to the Netherlands where she was caring for her ailing dad and her initial direct flight got cancelled, so instead of arriving at 11 AM she would be arriving around 6 PM at SeaTac airport. So, our regular daily walk was a bit later than normal. Around 11.15 AM I left my house on top of the bluff to walk down to the beach on our private trail. At 11.31 AM I sent a WhatsApp message to my sister in law, which indicates the attack happened slightly after that. When we arrived at the beach I decided to take the path through Seahurst Park. A path that goes on top of the beach. I remember myself looking at our neighboring house to see if I could see our house from there. All of sudden I heard someone calling and then a pit bull came running towards my dog grabbed him at the top of his neck and pushed him down on the ground when I reacted to begin trying to remove the dog a second pit bull arrived and started pulling at his back end of his body with both dogs trying to pull my dog Menno apart. I remember by dog screaming while being dragged through the mud at the jaws of these two pit bulls. My dog was not on a leash at the time of the attack as we had just approached the park from our private property (we live two properties away from the south side of Seahurst park border). In hindsight I am glad I did not have him on a leash, so he tried unsuccessfully to get away yelping and screaming right from the beginning of the attack. As I saw these both dogs trying to kill my dog I knew Menno was going to die, so I tried everything in my power to get the pit bulls away from my dog. I remember first trying to open the jaws of the pit bull that was holding my dog by his neck. I knew he was close to the jugular, which is deadly. I was screaming and trying to scare these two dogs away, but I do not remember every action I took during this effort. It looks like my memory is blocking some of the most traumatic moments. At one point I had fallen to the ground and got the pit bull that was holding my dog’s neck away from Menno and my dog rolled over and stood up. I could not believe my dog survived the attack and I crawled back up. Right at that moment, the pitbull that held my dog at his neck, turned around came back and lunged at my head biting a large chunk out of my forehead. Seeing these teeth coming towards my head felt like I was going to die. The pit bull owner, who I believe had now the dog on a leash expressed a loud gasp. I felt a portion of skin hanging over my right eye and the wound was bleeding profusely. I looked at the male owner and told him that I needed medical help and asked him to call 911. I do not remember if he followed up, but I called 911 myself. I told the operator that both my dog and I were attacked by two pit bulls and that I needed an ambulance. The 911 operator asked where Seahurst Park was and I told them in Burien. In the meantime I had stood up and noticed there were two dog owners present, a male and a female. The female looked Hispanic with blond dyed hair and the male more a mixed race with black hair braided. I got the impression they both were Hispanic as they talked in the Spanish language to each other. I asked them to stay around and in anticipation of the arrival of the medics we walked towards the main parking area. As I wasn’t sure if the medics would arrive I called 911 again and they asked me again where Seahurst Park is and switched me over to another call center. At one point the male owner touched my back and said that he would bring me to the hospital, but I told him that I felt that I needed medical attention immediately given the severity of my head wound. While we were waiting a man in his 60s arrived with his dog (with short legs) and the female pit bull owner told him that her dog could attack his dog at any time. The man looked a bit shocked as he didn’t seem to comprehend what just had unfolded. I looked over at my dog to see how he was doing and he walked up with me. As I anticipated to be taken to the hospital I called a family friend to come and pick up my dog. Then I saw the medics arriving. The medics immediately comprehended the situation and told me they would get an ambulance to rush me to Harborview. While the medics worked with me my dog sat quietly next to me. When the family friend arrived my dog agreed to go with her and jumped into the back of her car. I grew a little concerned about ensuring to have the names and addresses of the pit bull owners as the police still had not arrived. The female owner wrote down my name and number and let me check the spelling (I told her to remove the a in Matthyas) and told me that they would meet at Harborview, but I had grown too worried about my injuries and medical condition to further pay attention to it. When I was in the back of the ambulance leaving Seahurst Park I noticed a police car arriving. Later while being at the emergency room an officer of the Burien police arrived, told me that he had the pit bull owner’s names, which gave me some relief.

This statement made by me is true to the best of my knowledge and belief, accurately sets out the evidence that I would be prepared, if necessary, to give in court as a witness. I make this statement knowing that if it is tendered in evidence, I will be liable to prosecution if I have willfully stated in it anything that I know to be false, or do not believe to be true. - Matthijs van Leeuwen

Matthijs is correct in stating, "It looks like my memory is blocking some of the most traumatic moments." Sometimes these memories are revealed to victims at a later time, and other times, they are never revealed. However, he does remember the moment before one pit bull clamped down, "biting a large chunk" out of his head. "Seeing these teeth coming towards my head felt like I was going to die," he wrote. This was a deliberate bite targeting the head, not a "redirected" bite.

“My dog barely made it, but we both are alive ... If the dog had bitten a half inch lower I would likely not have survived it.” - Matthijs van Leeuwen

Harborview Medical Center is a regional Level 1 trauma center in Seattle that serves a 5-state region, including Alaska. In 2016, a study of dog bite injuries treated at Harborview from 2003 to 2013 was published in peer-reviewed literature. The pit bull was the canine breed most associated with dog bite injuries in the trauma registry, documented as responsible in more than 1 of 4 injuries (27%). Among dogs unknown to patients, pit bulls were responsible for 60% of these injuries.1

The attack on Matthijs falls into both categories. His attack also matches categories in a more recent study: "Compared with other dog breeds, pit bull terriers inflicted more complex wounds, were often unprovoked, and went off property to attack ... The probability of a bite resulting in a complex wound was 4.4 times higher for pit bulls compared with the other top-biting breeds ... the odds of an off-property attack by a pit bull was 2.7 times greater than that for all other breeds."2

Matthijs has excellent legal representation and surgeons treating his injuries. He will undergo a third surgery to his head on Friday, January 22. This horrific attack was an exceptionally close call. If that pit bull had been able to inflict one more head or neck bite, or if the dog had bitten just a half inch lower, he likely would not have survived. Our hearts go out to Matthijs, his wife and Menno, who also amazingly survived this violent attack. All three have a long road ahead of them.

Menno attacked by two pit bulls in Seahurst Park

Photograph shows Menno's stitches after being attacked by two pit bulls at Seahurst Park.

The lower parking lot of Seahurst Park where paramedics began treating Matthijs' head injury.

1Ocular Trauma From Dog Bites: Characterization, Associations, and Treatment Patterns at a Regional Level I Trauma Center Over 11 Years, by Prendes MA, Jian-Amadi A, Chang SH and Shaftel SS, Ophthalmic Plast Reconstr Surg, 2016 Jul-Aug;32(4):279-83.
2Dog-Bite Injuries to the Craniofacial Region: An Epidemiologic and Pattern-of-Injury Review at a Level 1 Trauma Center, by Khan K, Horswell B and Samanta D, J Oral Maxillofac Surg, March 2020.

Also see: Level 1 Trauma Center Studies Characterizing Dog Bite Injuries Across Major U.S. Geographical Regions (2011-2019)

Posted on January 12, 2021 by Colleen Lynn

2020 Fatal Dog Attack Breed Identification Photographs

Nonprofit Captured 79% of All Breed Identification Images in 2020

Photographs of six fatally attacking dogs in 2020 obtained from multiple sources.

Jump down to view all 2020 breed identification photographs or read our analysis first.

DogsBite.org - In 2013, we began the tradition of publishing breed identification photographs of fatally attacking dogs when available through news reports, animal control agencies, police departments, social media and public information requests. Of the 46 dog bite fatalities recorded in 2020, 61% (28) had some form of an identification photograph. Our nonprofit was responsible for capturing 79% of them. Pit bulls and their mixes represent 71% of images collected in 2020.

Of the 28 cases with breed identification photographs, 25% (7) comprised images captured or republished by news media; 79% (22) comprised images located on social media pages of the dog's owner or family members; and 79% (22) comprised images that were the result of DogsBite research and otherwise may have gone unpublished. Police and animal control agencies only released images in 1 case, yet 67% (31 of 46) of all deaths involved dogs taken into quarantine.

(Percentages are higher than 100% due to a single death containing multiple dog images, each attributed to a different source, as well as images that fall into overlapping publishing categories.)

Identification Photographs (2013-2020)

From 2013 to 2020, images captured by our nonprofit have risen from 26% to 79%. Images published by media have fallen from 79% to 25%.

Breed Misidentification Conflicts

The most controversial case in 2020 involved the surly American bully breeding community. Lisa Urso, 52, was killed by her two Shorty bulls, but headlines claimed they were French bulldogs. A Shorty bull is a short, squat, gargoyle variation of the American bully and is only recognized by the American Bully Kennel Club. The Shorty bull "designer bull breed" was created by mixing 5 different types of bull breeds, including the French bulldog and American pit bull terrier.

The French bulldog community was so outraged that the President of the French Bull Dog Club of America left a comment on our website, appreciative of our identification of the dog. "As the President of the French Bull Dog Club of America we are glad to see the dogs identified correctly," Becky Smith wrote. "As a 500 member club our members including myself are outraged that French Bulldogs were named in this awful occurrence ... this was not done by French bulldogs."

2020 also marks a year when there were a number of different types of bull breeds involved in fatal attacks, including: pit bull, bull terrier, American bulldog, American bully and their mixes. There were also two types of mastiffs involved in fatal dog attacks -- a Neapolitan mastiff and a bullmastiff or South African mastiff (take your pick). Only 3 fatal attacks, 7%, involved dogs that were non-bull breeds: deaths inflicted by one Belgian malinois and two German shepherds.

Summary

61% of dog bite fatality cases in 2020 had some form of a breed identification photograph. Our nonprofit captured over three quarters of them, 79%, through our research and FOIA efforts. This additional level of photographic evidence is on top of the 565 plus multi-sourced news reports we collected and 30 public information requests we sent to various coroners' offices, police departments and animal control departments for the known 46 individuals killed by dogs in 2020.

Finally, the global pandemic greatly impacted media reports and breed identification photo collection this year. In 2019, there were 48 people killed by dogs and we logged over 1,115 news reports for these deaths. Even though there were 46 fatal dog maulings in 2020, media reports of them halved to 565. Media reports that captured breed identification images greatly diminished in 2020 as well, down to 25% of all photographs from an average of 57%, a decrease of 56%.

2020 Fatal Dog Attack Breed Identification Photographs

Julian Connell - Lafayette, Indiana

Photo of fatally attacking family pit bull-mix (social media & dogsbite)

DogsBite blog ::

Nonprofit Captured 79% of All Breed Identification Images in 2020

2020 Fatal Dog Attack Breed Identification Photographs

Julian Connell - Lafayette, Indiana

Sterling Ver Meer - Oro Grande, California

Lee Becham - Crawford County, Georgia

Geraldine Hamlin - Shreveport, Louisiana

Frederick Shew - Portland, Oregon

Doris Arrington - Memphis, Tennessee

Roxie Parker - Welsh, Louisiana

Dr. Nancy Shaw - Lyons, Georgia

Lisa Urso - Ingleside, Illinois

Robert Taylor - Mount Vernon, Arkansas

Skylar Headrick - Crandall, Georgia

Brice Sanders - Stockton, California

Katie Amos - Country Club Hills, Illinois

Infant John Doe - Hartford, South Dakota

"Coco" Portes Morilla - Oviedo, Florida

Barbara Cook - Mandeville, Louisiana

Donald Ryan - Jeffersonville, Indiana

Marley Wilander - Joliet, Illinois

Stephen Pemberton Sr. - St. Clair County, Illinois

Carolyn Varanese - Margate, Florida

Karen Wilkerson - Broken Bow, Oklahoma

Infant John Doe - Alamogordo, New Mexico

Zachary Willis - Moses Lake, Washington

Curtis Wickham Jr. - Tulsa, Oklahoma

Michelle Carr - Hampton, Virginia

Donald Allen - Jackson County, Florida

Dion Bush - Battle Lake, Minnesota

Jane Doe - Tallahassee, Florida

Excluded Case with Identification Photograph

Raelynn Larrison - Dayton, Ohio

How We Track Photograph Sources