FLORIDA -- A woman who was severely wounded at the Melbourne Dog Show five years ago was awarded more than $1 million by a jury Wednesday.
Marie Tatman said the 100-pound Akita, named Eli, bit her ankle as she was walking by and refused to let go. Tatman said her foot was left dangling after the bite.
In a civil trial, attorneys told the jury that the dog had bitten five other people before biting Tatman. The dog also bit another woman at another dog show.
Eli was sold to new owner, Sally Jaffe, but attorneys said Jaffe knew about the dog's history.
Tatman and her husband were awarded $1,262,000 by the jury.
Tatman said she has had five operations on her left ankle and doctors had to make her leg three inches shorter in order to put it back together. Her right leg was permanently injured years before the attack.
(WESH - February 22, 2012)
