They would be held criminally responsible in my state. It was codified into law a few years back after an elderly lady and her little dog were ripped to pieces by two Pit Bulls running loose. Happened not one mile from my front door. The law makes no distinction as to breed. If your dog (any breed) injures or kills somebody, you will face criminal charges. Since the law was passed, “problem” dogs became a problem only for their owners. Just this week, a local man was found dead in his townhouse. Killed by his own two Pit Bulls. They had attacked him before. He was stupid enough to keep them, and paid the price.
In MD, you are responsible for loss of livestock and must pay fair market value.
[for a 500 pound Angus, that’s some money]
God forbid your dog kill a Sacred Whitetail...now you’re looking at a felony charge and $10K fine.
If you are referring to the Lakeview guy, you have the ‘dogs kill man story” wrong, I’m afraid.
They suspect he OD’ed and the dog gnawed on him long after the fact.
“An autopsy of a 25-year-old Lake View man whose dog chewed portions of his upper body after his death proved inconclusive Wednesday, pending additional tests.
Matthew Lebold, of the 3400 block of North Janssen Avenue, was found in his home and pronounced dead at 1:13 p.m., according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office.
Sources said Lebold apparently overdosed on drugs, but an autopsy Wednesday proved inconclusive pending the results of toxicology tests, according to the medical examiner’s office.
The body had been there for at least a couple of days and was already decomposing, according to a source.
A pit bull had eaten through parts of the man’s face, neck and chest after he was dead, the source said.
Police found the man dead at 12:27 p.m., News Affairs Officer Veejay Zala said.”
It was *a* dog, not “dogs” and the dog did NOT kill him.
Please refrain from “rewriting” facts.
There have been *plenty* of stories where pets [cats, dogs, etc] have gnawed on their already deceased owners.
That may not be an especially pleasant thought but if you were a starving animal trapped in a house with no food, what would you do?