ILLINOIS -- Two pit bulls were shot dead Monday by police officers responding to a call about a dog attack in west suburban Elmhurst.
One neighbor thought he'd stumbled upon a hostage situation after seeing police officers swarm the home, in the 600 block of Kenilworth Avenue, shortly before 5 p.m.
"They police were ready for action," said Rick Cademartori. "They came in force, no doubt about that."
But police were actually responding to a 911 call about a dog attack.
"Authorities responded, and the dog was actually latched onto the gentleman. The police officers made several attempts to get the dogs off the gentleman and the dog would not come off. They shot the dog to stop the attack," said Elmhurst Mayor Pete DiCianni.
He said a couple -- 67-year-old Robert Moore and 70-year-old Patricia Koprowski -- were watching a relative's pit bull at their own home when it attacked their own dog.
The dog then turned on Moore and Koprowski and was still attacking them when police arrived, he said.
"From what I understand this gentleman could have been dead. The pit bull had chunks of flesh off his leg and off his arms. God forbid he went after his neck. It could have been a real tough situation," said DiCianni.
Moore was rushed to Loyola Medical Center in Maywood where he was listed in stable condition Tuesday evening. Koprowski remains at Elmhurst Memorial. Her condition was not known Tuesday.
During the police response, one officer shot the pit bull. Out of nowhere, police said another pit bull running through the property charged at another officer. That officer shot the animal with his shotgun.
Officers said they think the second pit bull came from elsewhere in the neighborhood.
Earlier this month, a pair of pit bulls attacked a jogger as he ran along Lake Michigan. Days later, a woman was ticketed after an officer said her pit bulls attacked his police dog several times.
The events have prompted a Chicago alderman to call for a review of Chicago's dog ordinances.
(NBC Chicago - January 24, 2012)
