Pit Bulls Kill Woman and Injure Two Men

[JackieMaya]

Here is another prime example of irresponsible pit bull owners. It's people like this who perpetuate the bad reputation pit bulls get. And to top it all, they might not even charge the dogs' owner! What a shame.

[b]Pit bulls kill woman, injure 2 men in Elbert
Roaming dogs slain; rabies tests planned[/b]
Article Published: Monday, December 01, 2003

By George Merritt and Jim Kirksey
Denver Post Staff Writers

ELBERT COUNTY - A pack of roaming pit bulls neighbors say have been aggressive in the past mauled a woman to death Sunday morning and injured two men, the Elbert County Sheriff's Office said.

Jennifer Brooke, 40, died Sunday after being airlifted to Swedish Medical Center.

Brooke left her home about 7 a.m. to take care of her horses in a barn near her home in a rural community east of Parker.

About 10 a.m., her friend Bjorn Osmunsen, 24, became concerned that she hadn't returned from doing her chores.

Around the same time, Osmunsen and another person were chased inside by three dogs. They noticed blood on the dogs' fur, Rattlesnake Fire District chief Dale Goetz said.

Osmunsen called 911 and reported Brooke missing, then went to look for her.

When he arrived at the barn, he was mauled by the dogs, as well, sheriff's officials said. He was later treated and released from Swedish.

A little before 11 a.m., Lynn Baker stepped out of his house about 500 yards away. The three dogs attacked him, gnashing his arms.

"It was awful," Baker said. "It was terrible."

Baker had walked to his pickup and was about to head for the store when he heard growling and suddenly saw the dogs snapping at him.

"The next thing I know, I'm being attacked by three pit bulls," he said. "One was leaping for my throat as one was dragging me down by my hand."

With the dogs hanging onto him, he tried to make it to the bed of his truck.

"I did make it to the back of the truck, or I wouldn't be here now," Baker said. "I kicked the big pit bull and yanked my hand down. It was scary. I thought I was dying."

The dogs attempted to jump in the bed of the truck and nearly made it when Baker started yelling, screaming so loudly that neighbors a quarter-mile away heard the shouts. He hollered for his mother to call 911 and for his 16-year-old son, Cody, to grab a gun.

Cody shot at the dogs with a 12-gauge shotgun, blinding one, knocking one down and disorienting the third.

The distraction was enough for Baker to jump down, grab his truck keys from the driveway and climb into the cab of the pickup. He drove it close enough to the house to scurry inside, he said.

"I told my son, 'It's my turn.' So, I grabbed the gun," Baker said.

Baker said he shot the largest pit bull twice with birdshot.

"I needed something bigger," he said. "When I shot him the first time he just come a running toward me, so I shot him again."

Baker then ran back inside the house, and the pit bull waited on the front porch.

"It's unreal," he said. "It's like those dogs have no soul. ... They were just looking for people."

All of the dogs were eventually killed by Elbert County sheriff's deputies, he said.

Baker was taken to Sky Ridge Medical Center in Lone Tree, where he was treated and released.

Dawn Woods said she could hear the shouting and gunfire from her house. She said the dogs had caused problems in the neighborhood before.

"They got out and attacked a jogger," she said.

"Another time, the dogs chased a woman into her home and persistently clawed the glass at her deck door until officers arrived," Woods said.

"You just don't expect things like that to happen out here," said Teri Koren, who lives in the area. "People let dogs run wild out here. "

There is a $50 fine for pet owners who let their dogs roam, Elbert County Sheriff Bill Frangis said.

Goetz, who responded to the call, described Sunday's attack as "gruesome" and said eight men have received counseling over the incident.

"I've been doing this 37 years," Goetz said. "I've never had anything like that."

Firefighters hosed Baker's home and blood-stained pickup Sunday night, fearing the pit bulls may have had rabies. The dogs' bodies will be examined to determine whether they had the disease.

Frangis said it was undecided whether charges would be filed against the dog owners.

Underwood did not release the name of the dogs' owner, but neighbors said the dogs come from a fenced yard in the 42000 block of Ricki Drive, less than a mile from Brooke's barn. There are other dogs on the property, Woods said.

A large sign on the gate warns "Beware of Dogs."

"They came to the wrong house when they came up here," Baker said.

Baker grieved for Brooke on Sunday night, calling her a friend.

The barn where she was mauled is about 500 yards from his home, and they often helped each other with their horses.

"I'm going to be fine compared to what my poor neighbor went through," Baker said. "Compared to what I went through, what she went through must have been horrible."

[ellieangel]

What a terrible terrible tragedy :evil: