Bonnici Law Group’s Case Asks, “Who Is Responsible When a Dog Bites?”

Bonnici Law Group is currently working with the victim of a vicious dog bite. The attack was so violent that the 21-year-old victim’s nose was literally torn from his face. The culprit, a Labrador retriever recently adopted by the victim’s family, has a history of aggression. Only two weeks prior to this incident, the dog attacked another woman, sending her to the hospital with severe injury to her hand. However, this attack was never mentioned when the San Diego family adopted the dog.

The pet adoption organization that had been responsible for the dog allegedly knew about its violent past, but neglected to make potential adopting families aware.

“This all could have been avoided by a simple phone call. If any of these defendants had contacted the family and informed them that just a few weeks before, this dog had severely injured someone else, they would have adopted a different dog and we would never be here,” said Mr. Bonnici.

Who Is Responsible for a Dog Attack?

Dog bites can result in very serious injury. The victim in this case has undergone four surgeries, the large scar on his face will serve as a permanent reminder, and the emotional trauma may never leave him. So who is liable for these tragedies?

California follows strict liability laws, which means that the owner of the attacking dog is generally held responsible for any attack even if there hadn’t been any indication that the dog may be violent. The family is also suing for fraud, since Labrador and Friends did not tell them about the previous attack. The family is adamant that they never would have brought the dog home had they known the truth.

What Can We Learn from the Attack?

The victim’s family hopes that their son’s injury will remind other families thinking about adopting a dog of the importance of checking on the animal’s history.

“I think this story needs to be told so people are not blindly adopting a dog from an organization that might be a potential risk in their home,” said the victim’s mother.

“I want to tell other families it’s okay to adopt pets. We’re not anti-dog by any means, but you do have to do your homework,” added the victim’s father.

In an interview with 10 news, attorney Bonnici Law Group explained what went wrong. There is an interview with the parents of the victim, and photos of the injury. Be warned, the content is graphic.