MI - Different pit bull may have killed girl

MI - Different pit bull may have killed girl
by Nicklaus Lovelady, nicklaus.lovelady@jackson.gannett.com
Posted: March 11, 2010

Authorities say a second pit bull found dead at the scene might have been the one that killed a 5-year-old Terry girl last month.

Animal control picked up a pit bull Feb. 12, the day Anataisa Bingham was killed, and that dog since has been quarantined.

The dogs got loose from a neighbor's property, but no one witnessed what happened. Anataisa had gone outside early that morning to find a friend so they could play in the snow. She was discovered later in a ditch by a neighbor.

Figuring out which dog killed Anataisa is important because it will determine whether someone is charged, Hinds County Sheriff's Department investigator Capt. Steve Bailey said.

Days after Anataisa's death, detectives interviewed the owner of the pit bull seized at the scene, although the Sheriff's Department repeatedly had said it still was looking for the owner.

The owner said the dog caught was his but not the one found dead, Bailey said.

"We don't know who's the owner of the second dog," Bailey said.

Bailey said he didn't know how the dog died.

Investigators still are waiting on DNA samples to determine which dog killed Anataisa. The samples were sent to a California laboratory, Bailey said.

Both dogs, one of them or neither could have fatally attacked the child, Bailey said.

If DNA determines the dead pit bull killed Anataisa or neither pit bull did, it would be hard to develop a case, Bailey said.

Both dogs had traces of human blood on them, he said.

"We don't have any witnesses to say 'That was the dog,' " Bailey said.

If the dog quarantined at the Mississippi Animal Rescue League is the one that killed Anataisa, prosecutors can pursue a number of charges, including depraved heart murder and culpable negligence, once the owner is identified.

Both the Hinds County Sheriff's Department and the district attorney's office said they also will consider a statute that says the owner of a "dangerous animal" can be charged with homicide if the animal kills a person. A person found guilty would face up to 20 years in prison, the same as culpable negligence. Depraved heart murder carriesup to life in prison.

"When I heard about the case, this is the statute that first came to mind," said Matt Steffey, law professor at Mississippi College School of Law, referring to the dangerous animal statute.

"One, it says the owner must know the propensity of the animal. Two, it's the owner's responsibility to keep the animal in ordinary care."

Steffey said ordinary care refers to how an animal is secured to prevent it from escaping. He said animals with a history of aggression should be restrained differently from other animals.

"Ordinary care, in my opinion, varies depending on the type of dog you have. Ordinary care for a lab may be different from ordinary care for a trained killer. A person with a killer dog should take greater steps to make sure the dog is restrained," Steffey said.

Anataisa's family members said the pit bulls consistently got loose. They also said the pit bull they believe killed Anataisa was used in dog fighting. If investigators find that to be the case, Steffey said, the owner would have known the dog has a propensity for violence.

Rescue League Director Deborah Boswell said the dog at the shelter has scars consistent with dog fighting.

"If that dog was made into a killer, you need to absolutely make sure it's properly confined," Steffey said. "If you don't, it's like leaving a loaded gun in the grass of your backyard and waiting for a child to pick it up."

District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith said it is too early to determine what, if any, charges will be filed.

"Every charge has different elements that have to be met, and based upon the facts they find in their investigation, we can then determine the appropriate statute," Smith said.

What charges authorities file depend on the outcome of the DNA test, Bailey said.

"The first thing we have to do is prove if this is the dog," Bailey said.

To comment on this story, call Nicklaus Lovelady at (601) 961-7239.

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