coastie_wife Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 2 plead guilty to letting dog maul their children A Hillsboro couple face prison for the repeated attacks against their son, 8, and daughter, 7 Saturday, August 21, 2004 HOLLY DANKS HILLSBORO -- A Hillsboro couple pleaded guilty Friday to felony assault charges for disciplining their two children over the past two years by letting a dog repeatedly attack them. From Our Advertiser Joyce M. Hoskins, 47, and her husband, David E. Hoskins, 46, both face as much as three years in prison. Washington County Circuit Judge Marco A. Hernandez accepted their pleas to three counts each of felony fourth-degree assault and ordered them held without bail. They have been in the Washington County Jail since May 25. The couple's children, a 7-year-old girl and an 8-year-old boy, are living in a foster home. Both children have been hospitalized in the past for injuries caused by the dog. The 7-year-old dog, Nigel, has been euthanized. The dog was a mix of pit bull terrier, Doberman pinscher, German shepherd and Labrador retriever. Voigt Barnhardt, a neighbor of the Hoskinses' in the 500 block of Southeast Walnut Street, said he and his wife called police March 19 when they heard the girl scream as she was leaving for school. "There is no way to describe what we heard," Barnhardt said. "There was a kid crying and a dog ripping her to pieces. It was bloodcurdling." The girl required stitches to close tears and puncture wounds to her arms, legs and back. "In the incidents with the girl, the boy watched and tried to come to some aid," said Andrew Erwin, Washington County deputy district attorney. During their investigation, police found that the dog previously had torn a chunk from the boy's ear. The children had other bite wounds that required various levels of treatment. Hernandez said Friday that he would sentence Joyce Hoskins to no more than three years and two months in prison, based on the woman's limited mental abilities. That is the maximum set by state sentencing guidelines on a third conviction for that level of crime. The judge made no such promise to David Hoskins. Erwin said he would argue for more prison time for both, which is allowed if the judge finds aggravating factors. The Hoskinses are scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 23. Erwin said he was ready to produce witnesses who would have testified at trial that a veterinary clinic quarantined Nigel after he bit the boy in June 2003. The dog was to be euthanized, but Joyce Hoskins protested, and the dog was returned to her. County animal control officials do not have authority to destroy an animal if the owner objects. "She specifically had discussions with them about having an aggressive dog and the liabilities in keeping an aggressive dog," Erwin said. Timothy Dunn, court-appointed attorney for Joyce Hoskins, said he would ask that she receive probation. Dunn said that would allow her "the opportunity to get help for her emotional and mental difficulties to enable her to parent." Donald Watt, court-appointed attorney for David Hoskins, declined to comment on his client's plea or potential sentence until county probation workers complete a pre-sentence evaluation. Erwin said by he was struck by the attacks' intentional nature. "When you see a child bitten by a dog, you don't think of it being the parents letting it happen; you think of a dog getting loose," he said. "This is not a random act that you can blame on the dog." Holly Danks: 503-221-4377; [email][email protected][/email] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yoladybug Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 That is truly one of the most horrible things I've ever heard :cry: . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canis erectus Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 Holy cr*p on a craw!!! Those folks are twisted, talk about a new meaning to tough love. Man, those poor kids probably spent their every waking hour at home scared to death of that dog... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtnek Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 [quote]enable her to parent[/quote] ????????? ARE THEY OUTTA THEIR F***ING MINDS????? she has already PROVED she cannot parent by letting DOGS discipline for her!!! OH MY GOD!!!!!! :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cairn6 Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 Oh my God those poor babies. See what is wrong with society here we are hoping people get that dogs are worth saving when our society doesn't even hold a value to children. They want to put these children back in the hands of a woman who did this to them. Children mean nothing they treat them like they are the parents property and we have to get the property back the parents no matter what the parents did. It's so sick either parent should never be allowed to set their eyes on these babies ever again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IYPChrissie Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 [quote]both face as much as three years in prison. [/quote] THATS IT??????????????????? 3 CRAPPY YEARS????? This just makes me SICK! :onfire: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imported_Kat Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 This is just unbelievable! How sick can people get? :evil: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imported_nea Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 That is so sick! :evil: Those "people" should be locked up for [i]life[/i], not a pitiful 3 years. :x :evil: :evil: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corgilady Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 That is disgusting....even if the lady had "limited mental capacities" there were surely other people in the kids' lives who could have intervened.... also what about their school??? Don't you think if a dog bit off a "chunk" of a boy's ear, somebody at school knew about it? :evil: :evil: :evil: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mouseatthebusstop Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 it's hard to belive how long this has gone on for. Questions should have been asked when the first injuries happened Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtnek Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 I apologize for the harshness of my post. I know that kind of language is frowned upon, with good reason. I was just SOOOO angry last night after reading that that I wanted to just reach through the screen and throttle those people. :oops: :oops: :oops: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coastie_wife Posted August 23, 2004 Author Share Posted August 23, 2004 It makes me sick that there is even a situation where that kind of thing happens. I can understand not putting a dog down when the bite occurs when the child is just as responsible (ie terrorizing the dog or being mean) but to purposely put the dogs on your child, that's just sick. If she's so challenged they need to TEACH her to be a parent...where the hell were they 8 years ago when she had the FIRST child? Let alone the second. People really suck sometimes....especially when I see cases where people lose their children over dirty houses or one spanking, but people like this get next to nothing done to them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellieangel Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 It makes me ashamed to be in the same species as those people :evil: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crested Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 WTF?!?! :o They used a dog to TEACH their kids?!?!?!?!?!?! They should be locked up in the loonie bin, not jail or anything else!! :evil: Sick bastards!! :evil: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtnek Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 actually Crested, jail would be better, simply because in a mental facility governed by the COunty or State, they could decide to let them out in three months, instead of three years, depending on if the resident pyschologist "thinks" he sees improvement.... :evil: :evil: :evil: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crested Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 courtnek: Blaah! But I ment that they'd be locked in THE jacket and put into the isolation room with the padded walls + one (not working) toilet. And they'd be left there to rot for the rest of their stupid lives. How does that sound? :evilbat: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtnek Posted August 23, 2004 Share Posted August 23, 2004 THAT I could work with.... :evilbat: :evilbat: :evilbat: :evilbat: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DogPaddle Posted August 24, 2004 Share Posted August 24, 2004 I just cannot comprehend . . . :x :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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