Dog Bites

Orlando personal injury lawyer James O. Cunningham and other attorneys throughout Florida will be monitoring news out of Tallahassee this coming February when lawmakers are expected to vote on a bill in the Florida House that would abolish a dangerous dog ordinance in Miami-Dade County. Florida’s current dangerous dog law was passed in 1990 and allows local governments to take appropriate action against dogs deemed dangerous after a complaint is made and served on their owners. Owners can appeal the dangerous dog classification in county court and, depending on the county’s ruling, may be required to register animals with their county’s animal control department. If an animal’s actions warrant it, the county can issue an order to have the animal impounded and/or destroyed.

The current law prohibits local governments from regulating specific breeds of dogs, but bans on pit bulls and other breeds with reputations for aggressiveness in Miami-Dade County and several municipalities were allowed to continue, as they were in place before the law went into effect. County lawmakers passed the Miami-Dade ban in 1989, after a pit bull viciously mauled an eight-year-old girl, leaving her permanently disfigured.

The proposed bill slated for review in February would abolish longstanding bans on pit bulls and other dangerous dog breeds in Miami-Dade County and other locations in Florida. Mr. Cunningham and other personal injury attorneys in Central Florida hope that legislators veto the bill and allow local ordinances to continue keeping residents safe from dangerous dog breeds.

Mr. Cunningham has been helping people injured in dog attacks since 1977 and fully endorses any laws that ban dog breeds with reputations for aggressiveness and unprovoked attacks. He knows very well that young people and the elderly are especially likely to be seriously injured by pit bulls and other dangerous dog breeds, as he has successfully helped them seek damages against negligent dog owners. These damages help injured people cover hospital care, expensive plastic surgery and lost wages, and they compensate them for pain and suffering and other costs caused by attacks. If you or a close family member has been injured in a dog attack and you would like to explore your legal options, call Mr. Cunningham at 888-425-2004 or 407-425-2000 to schedule a consultation. Call today to get an experienced Orlando personal injury attorney with a proven record of success in these cases on your side.

A two-year-old Port Orange boy was treated in an Orlando hospital recently for injuries he suffered in a dog attack. The accident investigation is still underway, but witnesses say the boy was playing on the front porch of a relative’s home when a dog described as a pit bull mix attacked him. Orlando Police say the boy was with his parents visiting the home of relatives at 419 Leslie Drive when he was attacked by the dog and suffered undisclosed injuries. Relatives rushed the injured boy to Halifax Health Medical Center in Daytona Beach for treatment for multiple puncture wounds and lacerations, and the boy was then transferred to Florida Hospital in Orlando where he is in stable condition.

Police are still conducting their investigation into the dog bite incident but say that the animal was seized and is under quarantine at the Halifax Humane Society while the investigation continues.

Pit bulls and pit bull mixes have a reputation for sudden, unprovoked and vicious attacks, and the aggressiveness of these dogs leads to many serious and often tragic attacks in the Orlando area each year. A few years ago, Florida lawmakers changed our state’s so-called “one bite law,” which allowed dog owners to avoid liability the first time their animal attacked anyone over six years old. Current Florida dog attack laws state that dog owners are liable for any damage their animal causes, regardless of whether or not the dog had a reputation for being aggressive and dangerous. Under Florida law, pit bulls and pit bull mixes are classified as “dangerous dogs,” and owners of these animals are liable for increased criminal penalties if their animals attack and injure anyone.

Far too many people in and around the Orlando area are attacked and severely injured and disfigured by dangerous dogs each year. Orlando personal injury lawyer James O. Cunningham has successfully represented dog attack victims since 1977 and has a proven record of success helping victims receive compensation from negligent dog owners. If a dog has attacked you or a member of your family and you would like to learn more about Florida dog bite laws and your legal options, call Mr. Cunningham today at 888-425-2004 or 407-425-2000 to schedule a free consultation.

A Jacksonville woman attacked by her friend’s pit bull-Labrador mix now has permanent scars on her lower lip, and she is urging Florida lawmakers to toughen existing laws against dog attacks. The victim said she was lying on a bed in a friend’s home taking a nap when her friend’s dog attacked her, causing a tear in her lower lip that required 185 stitches and plastic surgery. She told reporters that she wants her friend’s dog to be euthanized so that it can’t harm anyone else. Orlando personal injury lawyer James O. Cunningham has supported stronger laws against dangerous dogs for years. While there has been some progress, much remains to be done to protect Floridians from pit bulls and other dangerous breeds.
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An Orange County man shot and fatally wounded one of two pit bulls he saw roaming freely in his neighborhood after seeing one of the dogs attack his cat. Orange County Animal Services officials say police responded to a call in the 6800 block of Thousand Oaks Boulevard at about 5:30 p.m. on February 5 and found the dead pit bull on the road. The owner of the cat told investigating officers that the two pit bulls had damaged his yard and fence and that he had retrieved his weapon and killed one of the dogs when he saw it in his yard with one of his cats in its mouth.
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A boy was playing outside in his yard recently when a pit bull attacked and injured him. The dog’s owner claimed he did now know how his dog got outside, saying, “We don’t know how he got out. Every door was closed, and I figure someone came here and let him out and forgot about him.”
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A recent finding by animal control officials in Florida’s Lake County shows why dangerous dog laws are necessary to protect the public from injury.

A 3-year-old American bulldog named Goliath has been labeled dangerous by the municipal Animal Service department after biting and injuring a 7-year-old on January 9, according to reports in the local Orlando Sentinel newspaper. This victim was the second person bitten by the dog within three years. The injuries were not as severe as some other local cases but they were significant enough to get the attention of local public officials.
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In Florida, dogs and other pets require supervision outside of the home. Animals are now allowed to roam without supervision in Florida and most other states. Thus far in 2009, there have been 21 fatal dog attacks across the country, and 11 of them have involved pit bulls or pit bull mixes.

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The victim of a Florida dog bite saw the blood coming from her foot and ankle, but said the fact that a dog had attacked her didn’t seem real while it was happening to her. This article recently published in Florida Today accounted a dog bite attack that severely injured a 73-year-old Geneva woman. The dog attack resulted in the victim having a crushed left ankle and a left foot that was dangling from her leg by a few pieces of skin.

“It was emotionally difficult for me,” the 73-year-old Geneva resident said. “But I’ve accepted it…now I’m just grateful for every day I can get around and do something.”

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