League City, TX — A mother and daughter suffered serious injuries when they were attacked by a pit bull at an apartment complex in League City. The attack took place at the Avana South Shore Apartments. When officers arrived at the scene, they found the dog still attacking Chelsi Camp and her two year old daughter. The police were forced to put the dog down.
According to Camp, she was pet-sitting for her boyfriend when she and her daughter were attacked.
Camp and her daughter were taken to Memorial Hermann Hospital. At this time Camp’s daughter is still listed in critical condition.
Scene of the Accident
Commentary
It should come as no surprise that people in Texas are liable for their pets. In Texas (and seventeen other states), there’s a law on the books commonly known as the “one bite rule,” which basically states that the dog owner has no liability the FIRST time their dog bites someone. Of course, there are a few exceptions to this rule.
- The owner was aware that their dog had a tendency to bite.
- The owner in someway caused the bite. This would be the case if the owner tried to sic the dog on someone.
- The owner was in violation of local leash laws and the like.
This law is based on the assumption that pets are not naturally violent animals, and that accidents do occur (in the rest of the country, the owner is liable on the first bite). Now, this particular case sounds a little different. We don’t have all the facts, so we have to make a few assumptions. But it sounds like the pit bull was acting in an unnaturally violent manner. Of course, all dogs are different, and again we don’t have all the facts here, so there are still some questions that need to be asked.
If you’re present, and you fail to stop your pet from biting someone, it is possible for charges to be brought against you. Also, in Texas, the law does allow for damages to be awarded for mental anguish, to anyone witnessing an attack, provided that person is the child or parent of the victim, and the victim is either killed or seriously injured, which is what happened in this case.
