Original Story: detroitnews.com
The victim of a brutal mauling in Detroit this month is seeking at least $25,000 in damages from the owners of the dogs, according to a lawsuit filed Monday in Wayne County Circuit Court.
“The defendant in this case, acted in a way that terrorized this block … and put not just our client at great risk but to others — children, for example — who walked by this home almost everyday,” said attorney Mark Bernstein of the Farmington Hills-based Sam Bernstein Law Firm, which filed the suit. “That’s why this case in our opinion is enormously important.”
Steven Constantine, 50, of Detroit was walking in the 4500 block of Pennsylvania on Oct. 2 when about 12 dogs, pit bulls and mixes, attacked “and began eating him alive and only stopped when law enforcement utilized handguns,” according to the lawsuit. He was found nearly naked with severe wounds to his hands and feet. A Warren Dog Bite Lawyer represents victims of dog bites and animal attacks.
The owners of the dogs are listed as Derrick Felton and Elizabeth Collins Felton in the lawsuit.
The attack was so vicious, according to a Detroit police investigation, that arriving medics “were unable to exit their rig because the dogs were too aggressive” and police were forced to shoot at two of the dogs, killing one. The remaining dogs ran back to their home nearby and later euthanized, police said.
Derrick Felton was arrested the day of the attack on an unrelated warrant. No charges have been filed in the attack. A Warren Personal Injury Lawyer is reviewing the details of this case.
The suit claims the Feltons were negligent and failed to take proper precautions with the dogs.
In statements to police, Felton and Constantine acknowledged the dogs barked and growled “a lot.” Constantine also said the dogs were known to “go after people.”
Constantine remains at Detroit Receiving Hospital. Since the attack, part of his left arm and left leg have been amputated, according to the suit. His right foot was reattached, and doctors said his right arm is unlikely to function, Bernstein said.
“Right now he’s in a circumstance where he can’t ring for the nurse,” he said.
Bernstein said his firm has handled other animal attack cases but the facts of this one were especially egregious.
“Enough is enough,” he said Monday night. “This is not about pit bulls, it’s about people … It’s about irresponsible, reckless people who need to be held accountable.”
Showing posts with label Animal Attack. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Animal Attack. Show all posts
04 November 2014
08 September 2014
WITNESSES TO FATAL ATTACK ON JOGGER DESCRIBE DOGS AS 'HANGING FROM HIM'
Original Story: Detroitnews.com
Lapeer— The first person who tried to help a Livonia man during a fatal mauling testified Friday the two large dogs were “hanging from him” before being chased off with gunfire.
Edward Elmer said he was on a riding lawnmower cutting his lawn along Thomas Road in Metamora Township and waved to jogger Craig Sytsma just minutes before the July 23 attack by the Cane Corsos.
When Elmer heard Sytsma screaming he tried to go to the man’s aid but backpedaled when one of the animals looked at him menacingly. He then yelled to his girlfriend, Helen Barwig, “to get a gun,” he testified during the second day of a preliminary hearing for the dogs’ owners. A Warren dog bite lawyer is reviewing the details of this case.
Elmer said he fired one shot in the air from the .44 Magnum handgun and one dog released its grip on Sytsma and just stood and looked at him as if it was going to attack Elmer. Elmer fired a second shot and heard one animal “yelp” and the two dogs ran off.
Sebastiano Quagliata, and Valbona Lucaj, 44, are both charged with second-degree murder and harboring a dangerous animal in the bleeding death of Sytsma, 46. Lapeer District Judge Laura Barnard will decide if there is enough evidence for them to stand trial on the charges, which carry up to life in prison.
After the dogs ran off, Barwig tried to stop Sytsma’s bleeding with a roll of paper towels.
“It (blood) was pouring out, gushing out,” testified Barwig, who said Sytsma appeared to have suffered deep wounds to his right and left sides. A Mt. Clemens Dog Bite Lawyer has experience representing animal attack victims.
“At one point he said they got an artery and he was going to die,” she said, her voice breaking.
As they waited for an ambulance to arrive, Barwig, who is an emergency medical technician, said she could not get a pulse from Sytsma, who went limp.
She tried CPR for several minutes but was unable to revive him.
During the rescue efforts, one of the dogs returned and Elmer said he fired again at the animal and it turned away.
Two other people testified Friday they had had been attacked by Quagliata and Lucaj’s dogs.
April Smith, 25, said she and a sister were walking their leashed dogs on Thomas in May 2012 when they were attacked by one of the Cane Corsos, which bit Smith three times in the back of the leg. A Grosse Pointe Dog Bite Lawyer is reviewing the details of this case.
Jim Salego said he was walking on the street in November 2013 when he was surrounded by three growling Cane Corsos he kept at bay briefly with a walking stick before one of them bit him in the leg and the animals were called off by Quagliata.
“He (Quagliata) came out yelling ‘Don’t call cops. I will pay. I will take you to the hospital,’ ” said Salego, who said his leg was bleeding and he did call the police.
Salego said the bite required stitches and when he later asked police “what happened to the dogs” he said he was told the matter would be handled by the county animal control division.
Salego and Smith have since sued Quagliata and Lucaj for damages.
In testimony last week, veterinarian Dr. Sherry Wallace said Quagliata and Lucaj were warned weeks before the fatal attack their dogs were dangerous and should be seen by an animal behaviorist.
Wallace testified the two dogs tried to bite her and co-workers during routine examinations to be weighed and had to be restrained by Lucaj and the couple’s teenage children. She warned the couple the dogs were aggressive and dangerous.
The two Cane Corsos and another adult dog that had been involved in a previous attack have all since been destroyed. Seven puppies kept in the home have been turned over to an animal rescue group in Texas, authorities said.
The couple remain jailed in lieu of $500,000 bond each, pending resumption of the exam 1:30 p.m. Sept. 12.
Lapeer— The first person who tried to help a Livonia man during a fatal mauling testified Friday the two large dogs were “hanging from him” before being chased off with gunfire.
Edward Elmer said he was on a riding lawnmower cutting his lawn along Thomas Road in Metamora Township and waved to jogger Craig Sytsma just minutes before the July 23 attack by the Cane Corsos.
When Elmer heard Sytsma screaming he tried to go to the man’s aid but backpedaled when one of the animals looked at him menacingly. He then yelled to his girlfriend, Helen Barwig, “to get a gun,” he testified during the second day of a preliminary hearing for the dogs’ owners. A Warren dog bite lawyer is reviewing the details of this case.
Elmer said he fired one shot in the air from the .44 Magnum handgun and one dog released its grip on Sytsma and just stood and looked at him as if it was going to attack Elmer. Elmer fired a second shot and heard one animal “yelp” and the two dogs ran off.
Sebastiano Quagliata, and Valbona Lucaj, 44, are both charged with second-degree murder and harboring a dangerous animal in the bleeding death of Sytsma, 46. Lapeer District Judge Laura Barnard will decide if there is enough evidence for them to stand trial on the charges, which carry up to life in prison.
After the dogs ran off, Barwig tried to stop Sytsma’s bleeding with a roll of paper towels.
“It (blood) was pouring out, gushing out,” testified Barwig, who said Sytsma appeared to have suffered deep wounds to his right and left sides. A Mt. Clemens Dog Bite Lawyer has experience representing animal attack victims.
“At one point he said they got an artery and he was going to die,” she said, her voice breaking.
As they waited for an ambulance to arrive, Barwig, who is an emergency medical technician, said she could not get a pulse from Sytsma, who went limp.
She tried CPR for several minutes but was unable to revive him.
During the rescue efforts, one of the dogs returned and Elmer said he fired again at the animal and it turned away.
Two other people testified Friday they had had been attacked by Quagliata and Lucaj’s dogs.
April Smith, 25, said she and a sister were walking their leashed dogs on Thomas in May 2012 when they were attacked by one of the Cane Corsos, which bit Smith three times in the back of the leg. A Grosse Pointe Dog Bite Lawyer is reviewing the details of this case.
Jim Salego said he was walking on the street in November 2013 when he was surrounded by three growling Cane Corsos he kept at bay briefly with a walking stick before one of them bit him in the leg and the animals were called off by Quagliata.
“He (Quagliata) came out yelling ‘Don’t call cops. I will pay. I will take you to the hospital,’ ” said Salego, who said his leg was bleeding and he did call the police.
Salego said the bite required stitches and when he later asked police “what happened to the dogs” he said he was told the matter would be handled by the county animal control division.
Salego and Smith have since sued Quagliata and Lucaj for damages.
In testimony last week, veterinarian Dr. Sherry Wallace said Quagliata and Lucaj were warned weeks before the fatal attack their dogs were dangerous and should be seen by an animal behaviorist.
Wallace testified the two dogs tried to bite her and co-workers during routine examinations to be weighed and had to be restrained by Lucaj and the couple’s teenage children. She warned the couple the dogs were aggressive and dangerous.
The two Cane Corsos and another adult dog that had been involved in a previous attack have all since been destroyed. Seven puppies kept in the home have been turned over to an animal rescue group in Texas, authorities said.
The couple remain jailed in lieu of $500,000 bond each, pending resumption of the exam 1:30 p.m. Sept. 12.
28 July 2014
EXOTIC ANIMAL SPOTTED ROAMING IN WARREN IS EUTHANIZED
Original Story: Freep.com
An exotic animal whose discovery in suburban Detroit led officials to lemurs, foxes and other animals being kept in a home's garage has been euthanized, the Detroit Zoo announced Thursday.
The white-nosed coati was euthanized last week at the direction of the Macomb County Health Department to test for rabies, the zoo said, after a person living near where it was found roaming July 9 reported being bitten. A Macomb County Dog Bite Lawyer is searching for more evidence.
A necropsy showed no evidence of rabies, according to the zoo, which is located in Royal Oak. Physicians couldn't rule out the potential for rabies exposure due to the nature of the man's wounds. He has received vaccine treatment.
"Exotic animals require specialized veterinary care, which privately owned animals rarely receive," Detroit Zoological Society's chief veterinarian Ann Duncan said in a statement. "We are following strict quarantine protocols as these animals are examined and cared for."
The white-nosed coati is a member of the raccoon family and is found in the southwest U.S., Mexico, Central and South America. The 29 other animals found in Warren included another white-nosed coati, two ring-tailed lemurs and three fennec foxes. In addition, the garage held a number of rabbits and birds. A Mt. Clemens Dog Bite Lawyer said he was use to receiving calls on dog bites but a coati was new.
The birds and small mammals have been transferred to the Michigan Humane Society, but the other animals remain in the care of Detroit Zoo staff. The animals will be under quarantine for at least 30 days. Permanent homes for the other coati as well as the lemurs and foxes haven't been determined.
An exotic animal whose discovery in suburban Detroit led officials to lemurs, foxes and other animals being kept in a home's garage has been euthanized, the Detroit Zoo announced Thursday.
The white-nosed coati was euthanized last week at the direction of the Macomb County Health Department to test for rabies, the zoo said, after a person living near where it was found roaming July 9 reported being bitten. A Macomb County Dog Bite Lawyer is searching for more evidence.
A necropsy showed no evidence of rabies, according to the zoo, which is located in Royal Oak. Physicians couldn't rule out the potential for rabies exposure due to the nature of the man's wounds. He has received vaccine treatment.
"Exotic animals require specialized veterinary care, which privately owned animals rarely receive," Detroit Zoological Society's chief veterinarian Ann Duncan said in a statement. "We are following strict quarantine protocols as these animals are examined and cared for."
The white-nosed coati is a member of the raccoon family and is found in the southwest U.S., Mexico, Central and South America. The 29 other animals found in Warren included another white-nosed coati, two ring-tailed lemurs and three fennec foxes. In addition, the garage held a number of rabbits and birds. A Mt. Clemens Dog Bite Lawyer said he was use to receiving calls on dog bites but a coati was new.
The birds and small mammals have been transferred to the Michigan Humane Society, but the other animals remain in the care of Detroit Zoo staff. The animals will be under quarantine for at least 30 days. Permanent homes for the other coati as well as the lemurs and foxes haven't been determined.
25 July 2014
MAN OUT FOR JOG MAULED TO DEATH BY 2 DOGS IN MICHIGAN
Original Story: USAToday.com,
DETROIT — A pair of dogs attacked and mauled to death a man as he jogged down a quiet, dirt road in rural Michigan. A Mt. Clemens dog bite lawyer said dogs often attack in packs.
Craig Sytsma, 46, of Livonia died of his injuries Wednesday night at a local hospital, police in Metamora Township said.
"He was jogging, doing what everybody else does out there, running and riding bikes," said Metamora police Officer Sean Leathers, who was one of the first on the scene. Sytsma, a divorced father of three, was unconscious and undergoing CPR when Leathers arrived.
Sytsma worked in nearby Oxford and had apparently decided to go for a jog after leaving work.
The dogs were apparently running free on the road where the attack took place. Neighbors fired shots into the air to try to scare the dogs off the jogger.
Afterward, the dogs retreated to their owner's home.
The dogs are cane corsos, an Italian mastiff-type breed that the American Kennel Club says were property watchdogs that hunted wild boar in their native country. Their name derives from the Latin "cohors," meaning guardian or protector, according to information on the club's Website.
The dogs, which are younger than 5-years-old, are currently quarantined at the Lapeer County Animal Shelter while the investigation continues. Lapeer sheriff's Detective Jason Parks said the dogs were brought in by their owner. Authorities will seek to have the dogs destroyed if the owner relinquishes his rights to them or they will take the matter to court if he fights to keep them.
No decision has been made on criminal charges, but the Lapeer County Prosecutor's Office is involved and the owner has possibly retained a Warren dog bite lawyer.
Given the nature of the attack, Parks said, it would be in the public's best interest to destroy the dogs.
Parks described the dogs as black and brindle in color, well-muscled and aggressive. Cane corsos typically weigh 90-110 pounds, Parks said, noting that the dogs involved in the attack appear to be of average weight for the breed.
"They definitely react when people are inside the room. … They're aggressive dogs," Parks said.
Parks said authorities have not been able find anyone who recalls another fatal attack on a human by an animal in Lapeer County in at least 50 years.
"It's something that is out of the norm, and it's something you'd hope would never happen," Parks said.
DETROIT — A pair of dogs attacked and mauled to death a man as he jogged down a quiet, dirt road in rural Michigan. A Mt. Clemens dog bite lawyer said dogs often attack in packs.
Craig Sytsma, 46, of Livonia died of his injuries Wednesday night at a local hospital, police in Metamora Township said.
"He was jogging, doing what everybody else does out there, running and riding bikes," said Metamora police Officer Sean Leathers, who was one of the first on the scene. Sytsma, a divorced father of three, was unconscious and undergoing CPR when Leathers arrived.
Sytsma worked in nearby Oxford and had apparently decided to go for a jog after leaving work.
The dogs were apparently running free on the road where the attack took place. Neighbors fired shots into the air to try to scare the dogs off the jogger.
Afterward, the dogs retreated to their owner's home.
The dogs are cane corsos, an Italian mastiff-type breed that the American Kennel Club says were property watchdogs that hunted wild boar in their native country. Their name derives from the Latin "cohors," meaning guardian or protector, according to information on the club's Website.
The dogs, which are younger than 5-years-old, are currently quarantined at the Lapeer County Animal Shelter while the investigation continues. Lapeer sheriff's Detective Jason Parks said the dogs were brought in by their owner. Authorities will seek to have the dogs destroyed if the owner relinquishes his rights to them or they will take the matter to court if he fights to keep them.
No decision has been made on criminal charges, but the Lapeer County Prosecutor's Office is involved and the owner has possibly retained a Warren dog bite lawyer.
Given the nature of the attack, Parks said, it would be in the public's best interest to destroy the dogs.
Parks described the dogs as black and brindle in color, well-muscled and aggressive. Cane corsos typically weigh 90-110 pounds, Parks said, noting that the dogs involved in the attack appear to be of average weight for the breed.
"They definitely react when people are inside the room. … They're aggressive dogs," Parks said.
Parks said authorities have not been able find anyone who recalls another fatal attack on a human by an animal in Lapeer County in at least 50 years.
"It's something that is out of the norm, and it's something you'd hope would never happen," Parks said.
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