Elgin - A St. Charles woman has filed suit against an Elgin preacher,
claiming she and her daughter were mauled by his "vicious" pit bull.The
unprovoked attack happened May 10, 2009, when the dog "slipped his
collar" while plaintiff Kathleen Callahan and her daughter were visiting
in a backyard on the 2000 block of Torino Street in Elgin, according to
the lawsuit filed in Kane County on Wednesday.
The dog charged
and attacked the plaintiff's adult daughter, scratching and biting her
forearms, and then butted its head into Callahan's knee, causing injury
to both women, the suit says.
The dog's owners are identified as
Epworth United Methodist Church Pastor David Newhouse and his wife
Christy, who are each named as defendants along with Epworth and the
United Methodist Church.
David Newhouse, who was unaware of the
suit, referred questions Thursday to church attorney Alfred Kirkland,
who did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
The
complaint says Newhouse and his wife, who live next door to the
plaintiff's daughter, acquired the American Staffordshire terrier from a
humane society or rescue shelter several years ago, and that it
routinely escaped its leash and acted aggressively with people.
The
suit, which seeks more than $50,000 in damages, claims both the
Newhouses and the church, which owns the property where they live,
ignored the animal's "viciousness and its prior contact when running
free and unsupervised throughout the neighborhood."
As a result
of the attack, Callahan says, she suffered "severe and permanent
personal injuries, both internally and externally," which will affect
her ability to lead a normal life and left her with medical bills.
The case goes to a judge May 6 at the courthouse in Geneva.
Read more:
Daily Herald
Related posts:
Elgin pit bull attacks (there are a LOT of them)
