ILLINOIS -- A woman is recovering at a hospital this afternoon after she and a Chicago Police officer were bitten multiple times by one of two dogs which was shot by the injured officer this week in the Little Village neighborhood on the Southwest Side.
The woman is in fair condition this afternoon, said Mount Sinai Hospital spokeswoman Dianne Hunter. The officer has been discharged, according to Hunter.
Two grey pit-bull terriers began attacking the woman while she was coming home from the laundry in the 2600 block of West 21st Place about 3:40 pm. Monday, police said.
As she tried to enter the back of her home, one dog began gnawing on her right hand several times and then went for her neck, police said.
She lifted her injured arm to defend herself and was bitten in the underarm area, police said.
She began screaming, catching the attention of a neighbor who threw a piece of meat at the dogs to distract them as the woman was on the ground, police said.
The dogs then attacked a responding Ogden District police officer who was exiting his police vehicle.
When one dog bit his left arm, the officer used his baton on the dog to try and free himself -- but when that didn’t work, he shot the dog in its front “shoulder” area and the dog loosened its grip.
The officer, who was working without the help of a partner that day, fired six times and those casings were recovered on the scene.
An ambulance took the woman, who suffered five puncture wounds to her right hand and an “open wound’’ to her armpit area, to the hospital.
The officer was also taken to Mount Sinai where he was treated for bites to his left arm and right calf and knee. He suffered muscle injuries that were serious, police said.
Both dogs were impounded, but officials determined only one was the "biter dog,'' according to Animal Care and Control spokesman Brad Powers.
That dog, a 1½-year old, pit bull mix named “Blue,’’ remains in the care of animal care authorities Wednesday after it was treated for a gunshot wound to its leg, Powers said.
“The injuries are not thought to be life-threatening,’’ Powers said.
The wounded dog will remain there until an investigation is completed that will determine if the dog is safe to own without restrictions.
Blue has not been taken away from its owner, according to Powers. The owner redeemed the other dog.
No property was damaged and the dogs belong to someone who lives nearby, police said.
It was not known if any citations were filed.
(Chicago Tribune - May 16, 2012)
