Anna Hamby, the county’s animal control director, said that her department was called by the sheriff’s office after the attack Friday in the Forbush community.
“The owner met him (the animal control officer) with the dog, and it was deceased at that time,” Hamby said.
She said she did not have information on how the dog died.
Many details about the attack itself are still not being made public.
The baby was bitten around 11:40 a.m. Friday by a single dog that belonged to her family, Yadkin Sheriff Ricky Oliver said Tuesday. Dixie Jennings died from head and injuries due to the dog bites, according to Dr. Donald Jason, the Forsyth County medical examiner.
Oliver declined to release the incident report on the attack, citing a desire to protect the feelings of the family in the days after the attack. He said there was no evidence of criminal activity and that he does not expect charges in the case.
Edward Powell, the Yadkin County attorney, said Wednesday that the report is not yet public because the investigation is continuing.
“The investigation is not complete and is still ongoing,” he said.
There is no N.C. statute that protects public documents related to accidents or the names of victims or witnesses from being accessible to the public. Only information related to criminal investigations can be withheld in certain circumstances, according to Amanda Martin, the general counsel for the N.C. Press Association.
Oliver on Tuesday called the attack an “unpreventable, tragic accident.”
Safety advocates emphasize that a baby should not be left alone with a dog. And even when an adult is present, an animal can do something unexpected, said Colleen Lynn, the founder of DogsBite.org, a group dedicated to reducing serious dog attacks.
“The infant is helpless… and these attacks, I don’t think people realize how fast they can happen,” she said.
(Winston-Salem Journal - Nov 14, 2012)
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