NEW JERSEY -- A 48-year old township man who was bitten by a neighbor’s Rottweiler has been awarded $650,000 compensation.
It wasn’t only for the dog bite, but for the aftermath in which the victim had to undergo two surgeries, said James Maggs, the Brielle lawyer who negotiated the settlement for Jeffrey O’Leary.
O’Leary sued his neighbor under New Jersey’s “Dog Bite” statute, which imposes strict liability on the owner of a dog that bites someone in a public place or lawfully on private property.
“This settlement sends a clear message to dog owners that they are absolutely responsible for injuries their pets cause to others,” said Maggs in a release.
O’Leary was helping his neighbor, James Nichilo, unload wire mesh from his pick-up truck on July 26, 2011.
Nichilo’s two Rottweiler dogs, a male named Diesel and a female named Onyx, were chained the front of Nichilo’s garage next to the pick-up truck.
O’Leary began to pet the dogs, who had behaved in a friendly and familiar manner with O’Leary in the past, Maggs said.
When O’Leary turned away to resume unloading the wire mesh, Onyx attacked, biting O’Leary’s face and forearm, according to the release from Maggs & McDermott.
O’Leary was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center for multiple injuries, including what Maggs described as “significant tissue loss” around his lips, and cuts on his forehead and left arm.
O’Leary was taken into surgery at the Neptune hospital. As time went on and scarring formed, O’Leary had trouble fully opening his mouth and experienced numbness around his lips, Maggs explained.
One year later, O’Leary went in for a second surgery.
The dispute was mediated Sept. 13 before retired Superior Court Judge James D. Clyne. The case settled Oct. 24.
The Nichilos were represented by Lynn Hershkovits of Styliades, Jackson and Burghardt in Morristown. She could not be immediately reached.
(APP.COM - Nov 1, 2013)
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