Owning a dog comes with a lot of responsibilities. Not only do you have to worry about the basics like making sure it has plenty of food, water and exercise, you also need to be aware of the legal responsibilities you take on when you own a dog. In the state of Connecticut, when a dog causes damage to another person’s body or property, the owner of that dog is usually held accountable for those damages, with a few exceptions.
One family that filed a lawsuit against a dog’s owner was recently awarded $107,694 for medical expenses and damages that resulted when the man’s dog bit the family’s 7-year-old daughter. Some of the dog bite injuries on her face were deep enough to hit muscle and required a total of 36 stitches. The dog reportedly bit another person within two months of the attack on the little girl.
The girl was on a road when the pit bull mix went after her. The dog’s owner denied that the dog bit the girl at all. He claimed that his dog merely scratched the girl’s face as it was attempting to lick her. To make it worse, the dog’s owner has been ignoring the judgment levied against him, and the family’s attorney can’t place a lien on his property because he lives in a house that is owned by a trust.
This incident most likely had a profound effect on the way this little girl will forever see dogs. A dog bite can be a very traumatic experience, especially for someone so young. Her family had every right to sue the dog’s owner and expect to be compensated not only for her medical bills, but for her pain and suffering. They did the right thing by securing a lawyer to represent them in court and help them get the ruling they deserved. Now hopefully they get the judgment they deserve.
