80s_Fan
10-30-2007, 11:36 AM
TORONTO - An 11-year-old who ordered his German shepherd to attack a playmate will not be charged because he is too young, Toronto police said Monday.
Aliah Strowger, 8, underwent surgery to repair a hole in her upper thigh after the attack. "I thought I was done. I was done," she said Monday night from her hospital bed. "I screamed so loud. It hurt a lot."
Police said the Saturday afternoon attack came after an argument broke out between four children who were playing. "An 11-year-old boy was offended and went home to get his dog," police said in a release.
****Aliah said the boy was angry at her 11-year-old brother, Jordan. But when she yelled at her brother to run, the dog bit her, taking a chunk out of her leg.
The 11-year-old owner of the dog called for the animal to retreat and it obeyed, ending the attack. Neighbours helped Aliah into their van and drove her home, then she was taken to hospital.
"They were looking for a piece of her thigh. It was that bad. The dog took a chunk right out," said her mother, Amanda. "The dog chomped right through her pants. Ripped them to shreds."
Aliah underwent 90 minutes of surgery and will have to spend the coming weeks in physiotherapy.
She has been told she will return to hospital in a year for a skin graft. The dog has since been turned over to Animal Control for a period of quarantine, its fate undetermined. The dog's vaccination records are up to date, police said.
"I definitely think the dog should be put down to sleep and the parents should be responsible for their child. We're also going to be suing them," Strowger said.
"That dog was used as a weapon and there (are) consequences when you do something like that.
"We're not looking for money. But someone should be paying. Paying for the medical bills and for what happened to my daughter." Strowger said this is not the first time the dog has bitten children, saying it has nipped at a few other kids in the neighbourhood.
Police said no charges would be laid, "due to the age of the accused."
Aliah Strowger, 8, underwent surgery to repair a hole in her upper thigh after the attack. "I thought I was done. I was done," she said Monday night from her hospital bed. "I screamed so loud. It hurt a lot."
Police said the Saturday afternoon attack came after an argument broke out between four children who were playing. "An 11-year-old boy was offended and went home to get his dog," police said in a release.
****Aliah said the boy was angry at her 11-year-old brother, Jordan. But when she yelled at her brother to run, the dog bit her, taking a chunk out of her leg.
The 11-year-old owner of the dog called for the animal to retreat and it obeyed, ending the attack. Neighbours helped Aliah into their van and drove her home, then she was taken to hospital.
"They were looking for a piece of her thigh. It was that bad. The dog took a chunk right out," said her mother, Amanda. "The dog chomped right through her pants. Ripped them to shreds."
Aliah underwent 90 minutes of surgery and will have to spend the coming weeks in physiotherapy.
She has been told she will return to hospital in a year for a skin graft. The dog has since been turned over to Animal Control for a period of quarantine, its fate undetermined. The dog's vaccination records are up to date, police said.
"I definitely think the dog should be put down to sleep and the parents should be responsible for their child. We're also going to be suing them," Strowger said.
"That dog was used as a weapon and there (are) consequences when you do something like that.
"We're not looking for money. But someone should be paying. Paying for the medical bills and for what happened to my daughter." Strowger said this is not the first time the dog has bitten children, saying it has nipped at a few other kids in the neighbourhood.
Police said no charges would be laid, "due to the age of the accused."