Police: Dog Bites Chunks Out Of Girl's Face

POSTED: 11:32 am EDT May 9, 2007
www.newsnet5.com

LORAIN, Ohio -- A family in Lorain is praying for a 7-year-old girl who was mauled by a pit bull, police said.

Police said Georgia Rice was playing at a friend's house when she got tangled in the dog's chain that was attached to a tree in the back yard.

The dog bit off chunks of the girl's face, officials said.

She was taken to an area hospital. The girl had surgery on her face and is in fair condition.

The pit bull's owner gave the county custody of the animal. It will likely be euthanized

Tied-up pit bull mauls Lorain girl, 7

Adam Wright | The Chronicle-Telegram

LORAIN, Ohio -- A pit bull mauled a 7-year-old girl Tuesday night — chewing off her finger and ear and leaving bite wounds all over her face.

Georgia Rice was flown to MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland, where the finger was reattached, her ear was reconstructed and more than 100 stitches were used to close the facial wounds, said her stepfather, Nathan Anderson.

She might not be released until later this week, he said.

' She’ll lose some feeling in the finger, and she has a steel plate under her right cheek from where the dog broke her face,’’ Anderson said, while standing outside the hospital. “Her whole face is all scarred — completely.”

Georgia was playing with her best friend, 7-year-old China Chaney, in the backyard of China’s East Avenue home when the attack occurred around 7:15 p.m. Georgia lives just around the corner on East 25th Street, and she has been friends with China for 21⁄2 years, her stepfather said.

“It’s her best friend, and she plays in that yard all the time,” Anderson said. “Her mom is really taking this hard. She keeps saying that she should have watched her better.”

China’s 13-year-old sister, Shekenna Chaney, was the first to hear Georgia’s cries from her bedroom on the second floor of the home, according to Shona Chaney, China and Shekenna’s mother.

Shekenna yelled to her mom that the dog was attacking Georgia, prompting Shona Chaney to grab a windshield scraper from the home and run outside.

“It looked like the dog was on top of her and had her face in his mouth,” Shona Chaney said.

China was throwing rocks at the dog, trying to help her friend, when her mother approached. Shona Chaney said she hit the pit bull five times with the scraper and the dog backed away.

“I wrapped the girl in a towel and called 911,” she said. “She was covered in blood.”

China told her that the dog, a 7-month-old pit bull named King, was sleeping and chained to a tree close to a tire swing on which Georgia was playing. Georgia fell off the swing, which Chaney said likely startled the dog. She believes Georgia may have started running because she was afraid, prompting the dog to attack.

She said the dog, which belongs to her brother who lives at the house, has never bitten anyone.

Lorain Animal Control Officer Mike Mattei took the dog to the Lorain Animal Clinic, where it will be monitored for 10 days. After that, owner Keonn Chaney can ask for the dog back, but he must register it as a vicious animal. Otherwise, he can ask that it be put down or it will be sent to the county dog pound in Elyria.

Mattei said there have not been any reported attacks by the dog and he was kind and gentle when police arrived.

Keonn Chaney was cited at the scene for not registering the dog and also could be cited if he cannot produce a record of an up-to-date rabies vaccination after 10 days. He likely will not be charged with anything else.

“In this situation, the dog was restrained on private property,” Mattei said. “It could be a civil matter, however, I can’t see other criminal charges being filed.”

Keonn Chaney declined comment Wednesday.

Contact Adam Wright at 329-7151 or awright@chroniclet.com.

 

Pit bull euthanized

JENNIFER BRACKEN, Morning Journal Writer
05/11/2007

The pit bull that mauled a 7-year-o d Lorain girl was euthanized

'The owner of the dog signed over his rights to the city (Wednesday),'' Mattei said. ''It was euthanized this morning and the dog has been sent to Columbus for observation.''

Georgia Rice remained in fair condition at MetroHealth Medical Center yesterday, according to hospital officials. The 1-year-old pit bull named King, weighing about 40 pounds, attacked Georgia Tuesday in the backyard of an East Avenue residence. Georgia was playing with her friend, China Chaney, when she apparently fell off a tire swing and was mauled by the dog, which was chained in the backyard.

Lorain Municipal Court Judge Thomas Elwell fined dog owner Keonn Chaney $150 for not having the dog registered. The fine is the maximum.

''He seemed very upset about it,'' Elwell said. ''He said the dog was put down.''

Keonn Chaney told the judge the dog was confined in the yard at the time of the attack and thought maybe the young girl startled the dog.

'He said the dog has never bitten anybody before,'' Elwell said. ''He seemed very remorseful.''

Lorain police Officer Kyle Gelenius said when he arrived at 2387 East Ave., Georgia was covered in blood from several large lacerations on her face. Shona Chaney, the adult in the home at the time of the attack, said when she went outside the dog had Georgia by the face.

On Wednesday, Dr. Robert Armstrong, a surgeon at MetroHealth Medical Center, said it would be several months before they could gauge the extent or Georgia's injuries, but said there will be scarring.

She suffered a large laceration to her right cheek, and a finger and ear were nearly ripped off, according to the police report. Armstrong said some of the lacerations on Georgia's face and neck extended down to the bone.

Mattei said in light of the worst dog attack he has seen in his career, there are precautions citizens and dog owners alike can take to avoid these situations. Although the city has an issue with stray dogs, Mattei said 99 percent of dog bites have been by dogs on their owner's property. He has made several suggestions to dog owners:
-- Vaccinate animals against rabies and have proof of vaccination available to be shown upon request.
-- Have an annual dog registration tag on their dog at all times. Tags can be purchased at Drug Mart or at the Lorain County Dog Kennel.
-- Be responsible for your animals at all times, including posting ''Beware of dog'' signs, keeping animals restrained with a leash or muzzle, disallowing children and adults from coming in contact with animals that could be protective of their living areas and fencing areas where dogs are allowed to roam freely.

'It's the summer and these things are going to happen,'' Mattei said. ''These animals are everywhere. The city hasn't had a dog warden for two years. I have two years of backup we're dealing with. It's overflow from those years.''

Mattei said if citizens see a loose dog, to stay away from it and call police. When he arrives to catch the dog, citizens need to stay inside their homes as to not further agitate the dog during the catch.

'Before I can even approach the dog I have to tell people to get into their home and get away from the dog,'' he said. ''People see something out of the norm going on and they want to swarm and want to watch. You have got to stay out of the way. Myself and the police department can't do what we have to do to make things safe when there are 20 people around watching.''

Mattei said about one in 10 dogs he catches has registration tags.

'Ninety-five percent of dogs with tags around their necks go home,'' Mattei said. ''Dogs with no tags go to sleep. Permanently.''

jbracken@morningjournal.com