A toddler sustained serious injuries in a dog bite incident on March 1, 2010 involving a pit bull. The San Bernardino Sun reports that the 4-year-old girl was visiting her uncle at his apartment in the 1600 block of E. Kingsley Ave. in Pomona where the dog attack occurred. Authorities say the girl may have surprised the sleeping dog. The pit bull bit the girl on the face. She was transported to an area hospital for treatment of serious injuries. The dog was neither licensed nor had current rabies shots. The pit bull was taken into custody by animal control officials.
Frightening Attack
I sympathize with this little girl and her family for what they are going through now. I hope and pray that the girl did not suffer serious disfigurement or deep scarring that cannot be fixed by cosmetic surgery. A number of young victims mauled by dogs do live with their physical scars for the remainder of their lives. I hope this child has not sustained any catastrophic injuries and pray for her quick and complete recovery.
This news report does not clearly state who was watching the girl at the time of the attack. We also do not know how the dog got provoked or whether the pit bull had any prior history of aggression.
Dog Bite Statistics
Despite what pit bull activities say, statistics show that these animals are prone to be aggressive. According to Dogsbite.org, a Web site for dog attack victims nationwide, of the 88 fatal dog attacks in the United States in a three-year period between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2008, 59 percent or 52 incidents involved pit bulls followed by Rottweilers (14 percent), American bulldog and Husky (5 percent each). This dog bite fatality finding is more or less consistent with an earlier report released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, which states that pit bulls and Rottweilers together account for 60 percent of all fatal dog attacks.
Claim for Compensation
California has what is known as a "strict liability statute. What that means is if you are a dog owner in California and if your dog bites someone, then you are liable for the injuries caused. If the dog owner also owns a home, then his or her homeowner's insurance should cover the loss and damages just as an at-fault party's car insurance covers damages in a car accident. An experienced California personal injury lawyer can help injured victims and their families obtain fair compensation to cover medical expenses, hospitalization costs and cosmetic surgery expenses in such dog bite cases.
We are not representing any of the parties mentioned in this article at the time the article was posted. Our information source is cited in the article. If you were involved in this incident or a similar incident and have questions as to your rights and options, call a reputable law firm. Do not act solely upon the information provided herein. Get a consultation. The best law firms will provide a free confidential consultation to "not a fault" persons named in this article and their family members.
This is really unfortunate. People who own dangerous dogs should not have them roaming free. I hope the young girl recovers from this accident.