Pit Bull Attacks and Dogfighting in Illinois

Jul 03, 2012 Quincy boy recovering after pit bull attack, dog still being sought

UPDATE: A Quincy family wants to prevent what happened to them from happening to someone else.
A Sunday afternoon turned out to be anything but lazy for one 4-year-old boy and his family.
April Walker was taking a friend home at 5th and Sycamore in Quincy.
Her 4-year-old son, Jacob, hopped out of her van when a pit bull came around a house and attacked him out of the blue.
Four-year-old Jacob Walker has 16 to 17 stitches in his face from Sunday's dog attack.
"He just started growling. I was arm-length away from Jacob. No sooner I look back at Jacob, the dog came running at me. It went right through my legs, had Jacob down on the ground. I was trying to grab Jacob and get him away from the dog. I kicked him. I grabbed Jacob in my arms. I threw him over my shoulder. The dog was still trying to grab at him. At that point when he was still trying to grab at him, the indoor was still open, so I put Jacob in the van. I jumped in right behind him, and I shut the van door. I hopped into the driver's seat, and I took Jacob straight to the ER," April Walker said.
Jacob's mother, April, said the dog was running around loose. She said she's not sure what made the dog go after Jacob and not her.
"There was no one else around. Jacob wasn't doing anything. He had just gotten out of the van. I was coming right behind him," she said. "We weren't doing anything to upset this dog, period."

An outrageously predatory attack

Quincy - A pit bull that attacked a young child Sunday near Fifth and Sycamore has not been found, and authorities are asking local residents to be on the lookout for the dog.

The attack took place at about 4:15 p.m. Sunday. Family members say Jacob Walker, 3, was attacked by the dog as he stood beside his mother, April Walker, and neither did anything to provoke the attack.

By Rodney Hart

Jul 03, 2012 Suit: Chicago Cop Matthew Bracken failed to stop his pit bull from ‘gruesomely killing’ smaller dog

Officer Ahole has been named and sued.

Chicago - A Chicago Police officer failed to restrain his “vicious” pit bull from mauling and “gruesomely killing” a small dog at Montrose Beach while his owner and children watched, a lawsuit filed Tuesday claims.

When someone tried to stop the March attack, the off-duty officer came over and asked, “Why are you punching my f------ dog?” the suit claims.

MATTHEW J. BRACKEN was named as a defendant in the lawsuit, which seeks more than $200,000 in damages.
related posts:
by Allison Horton
Read more:
Chicago Sun Times Accessed: 2012-07-03. (Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/68tVFeOUz)

Related post: Apr 18, 2012 Cop suspended over dog attack at Montrose Beach

Jun 28, 2012 Dog bites hand of USPS worker

CRYSTAL LAKE – A pit bull bit a U.S. Postal Service worker’s hand Tuesday as he worked his Crystal Lake mail route, officials said.

The dog, named Lucy, was unleashed and unattended when the bite occurred at 2:44 p.m. Emergency workers found Lucy on the front porch of her home in the 800 block of Boxwood Drive. Her owner arrived shortly after the incident.

by Lawerence Synett
Read more:
Northwest Herald Accessed: 2012-06-28. (Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/68lGwYBxS)

Jun 27, 2012 Naperville cops probe pit bull attack on boy

Naperville - An attack by a pit bull on Naperville’s southwest side sent a teenage boy to the hospital.
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“I remember hearing both boys laughing at first, then something like, ‘Whoa! Whoa! Down! Then the screaming started.”

“The dog ... was growling and attacking the boy and had ahold of his arm and would not let go. The other boy yelled at the dog and tried to pull him off, but the dog kept attacking, and the boy being attacked kept screaming.”
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“It was a horrifying experience, and as far as I could tell unprovoked, and I won’t soon forget that boy’s screams,” the resident said.

“I am more concerned about that dog. I think it should be put down, or at the very least removed from the home. It would be a big relief to know the dog is gone.”

By Bill Bird
Read more:
Naperville Sun Accessed: 2012-06-28. (Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/68lRsL9m9)

Related posts:
Feb 26, 2007 Dog Attack Sends Woman to Hospital
Dec 27, 2011 Wilmette boy treated for injuries after pit bull attack

Jun 25, 2012 Elgin police shoot 23 dogs, killing 19, since 2008

Mike Danahey's report reveals that Elgin has had far more reports of dangerous dog attacks and bites than a comparable city of Aurora. Most of them were pit bulls. Elgin police have had to shoot far more dogs than Aurora, but in both cities, pit bulls are the type of dog they are forced to shoot the most.

(Click to make larger.) Note that one dangerous dog owner lives in an apartment building and in two other areas, home owners are hemmed in by multiple dangerous dogs within blocks of each other. Ah, the good life in Elgin!

Elgin - Since Jan. 1, 2008, Elgin police have shot a total of 23 dogs over the course of responding to 16 separate calls. All but four of the shootings resulted in killing the dogs — significantly more than in the larger Kane County cities of Aurora or Naperville.

Theriault said that during that period, 348 tickets were issued for dogs roaming at large; 180 were citations for a dog not having a collar and tags; 141 were for not having rabies vaccinations; 111 were issued for bites or attacks; 107 were for animals displaying dangerous behavior; four were for dogs in heat roaming loose; and two were for having farm animals in town.

He also noted that between Jan. 1, 2008, and March 20, 2012, 9,901 dog complaint calls were made in Elgin, 392 of those initially coming in as dog bites.

Yes, you read that right, Elgin received 9,901 dog complaint calls in a span of 4 years and 3 months.

by Mike Danahey
Read more:
Courier News Accessed: 2012-07-02. (Archived by WebCite^® at http://www.webcitation.org/68rwIVaaZ)

Jun 26, 2012 Chicago pit bull mauls elderly invalid's small dog in front of him

Albany Park-Around 6PM this evening, a man in a wheel chair was walking his small dog in the 4900 block of N. Avers. An off leash pit bull attacked and killed the small dog right in front of its owner. The pit bull would not let anyone close to the small dog. Neighbors called 9-1-1 and Animal Control, but the small dog was already dead. The man in the wheel chair was understandably grief stricken. If the pit bull's owner was anywhere nearby, he was too cowardly to come forward.

I have no problem with pit bulls as a breed. But if owners train them to be aggressive, they should be held criminally responsible. Two dogs lost their lives today. (The pit bull was eventually taken by Animal Control). Pit bull owners: please don't inflict your cruelty and carelessness on the rest of the neighborhood.

My heart goes out to the man in the wheel chair and his family who lost their beloved pet.

Comment:
cc60618 5-year IP resident, lifelong Chicago resident.
My dog was attacked last year by a pit bull who jumped a six foot and a four foot fence to get to us. Totally unprovoked. Luckily, two men did come pull it off of mine and my dog survived.

The home owners claimed that this dog was theirs, no neighbors had ever seen it before. It wasn't vaccinated or neutered.
It was turned into Animal Control for the quarantine period for no vaccination. However, the owners never paid a penny of the tickets they were issued, or held responsible in anyway. And the dog was released back to them. No one has seen it in my neighborhood since.

Dangerous animals should not be on the streets. Owners need to be held responsible - I still have nightmares about the incident and am always more cautious taking a simple walk around the block. Citizens adopting any dogs, especially breeds that can be harder to control need to be educated and trained on how to restrain and prevent these incidents from occurring.

Comment:
Jerry Condo Association Representative
Several neighbors of ours witnessed and assisted in the attack. It was terrible and vicious. Despite the unfortunate occurrence, I was truly proud of the bravery and compassion for people in our neighborhood. That is what makes AP such a great place to live.

Read more:
EveryBlock Chicago

Jun 23, 2012 Cary will look into dog bites

“I strongly feel I have the right to not be in danger when walking on a public sidewalk.” - Kathy Brandwein

Cary - Kathy Brandwein and her husband were walking their dog in May when an unleashed, female beagle/pit bull mix rushed toward them. The pit bull injured her husband when he tried to protect his dog. Police had to come stop the attack and the pit bull mix was euthanized.

“You never forget how you feel, if you’ve had that happen to you,” Brandwein said.

Brandwein asked the village board this week to increase penalties for attacks when there is a negligent dog owner.

Village President Tom Kierna directed staff to start an internal committee to look into the village’s dog ordinances and see what the village is allowed to do within state law. He also asked staff to set up a public meeting for discussion on dog ordinances. The meeting has yet to be scheduled.

Brandwein suggested the village require hearings if there is an unprovoked dog bite and require the offending dog’s owner to give a reason why the dog should not be taken away or euthanized.

Village Attorney Michael Coppedge said the village is limited by the state’s animal control statute in what it can do.

Read more:
Northwest Herald Accessed: 2013-05-23. (Archived by WebCite^® at http://www.webcitation.org/6Gq8Fb7vs)

Related posts:
Nov 5, 2005 Nick Foley Survives Agony of a Pit Bull Rampaging Attack
Dec 19, 2005 Some want crackdown on pit bulls Recent dog attacks prompt more legislative attention
May 23, 2012 Dog bites man walking pet; animal to be euthanized

Cary is one more in a string of communities that report the town leaders are hampered by the Illinois Dog Control Act (Anna's Law). This town, Cary Illinois, is the location of a horrific pit bull attack. Nick Foley and Jourdan Lamarre, both 10 years old, and four adult were attacked by 3 pit bulls in an attack that lasted half an hour. The pit bulls ripped pounds of flesh from Nick Foley's body causing him to lose 50% of his blood. Please read Tribune reporters Carolyn Starks' and John Keilman's reportage describing the attack, how it affected the children, the families, and an entire neighborhood.

Kathy Brandwein gets to the exact heart of the problem, and has some good ideas, but after reading about Nick Foley's attack, you cannot help but understand that her suggestions do not go far enough.

In 2005, after Nick Foley's attack, state representative Michael Tyron (R) Crystal Lake said penalizing owners makes sense but so does restricting some breeds that have proven to be inherently dangerous.

Tyron argues it makes no sense to require a court order to deem those breeds dangerous... His bill would consider those dogs dangerous automatically and give local authorities more regulatory power.