Zachary King Sr., is on trial for second-degree manslaughter following his son's death. The family pit bull killed 7-year-old Zachary King Jr. in the basement of his home on August 16, 2007. This was a dog that many would say was abused and dangerous. The defendant admits that he warned people to stay away from it, but did not keep his own kids from it.
An article entitled Beloved pet, fearsome dog: dueling images of a child's killer on Twincities.com provides important details. I recommend reading the article and then thinking about this incident from the point of view of the defendant and, after that, the point of view of the prosecutor.
Because this dog previously had bitten many people, including 7-year-old Zachery, it clearly was vicious and dangerous as a matter of law. If the defense plans on offering nothing more than what was indicated in the article, Mr. King deserves to be convicted and banned from owning dogs in the future. The more interesting issue, in my opinion, is how we can educate people like him so that they can judge when a dog is too dangerous to keep.
Here are articles about the progress of this interesting trial:
Dad Of Kid Killed By Dog Breaks Down In Court
