This month, two people were killed by dogs in the USA.
On March 16, a 50-year-old woman from Friendswood, Texas, was found dead in her backyard, apparently the victim of her own dog or dogs, of which there were three. On March 23, a two-year-old Dallas-area girl was fatally mauled by her parents' dog at their mobile home.
Both deaths were in Texas, a state that still follows the one-bite rule. Under this ancient British legal doctrine, the owner of any domestic animal is not held responsible for the first bite, the first mauling, or the first killing by each and every one of his animals. (See The One-Bite Rule.)
Texas is in a minority of states that continues to salute the flag of Great Britain when it comes to dog bite laws. (For lists of states that follow or have abrogated the one-bite rule, see Legal Rights of Dog Bite Victims in the USA.)
On March 16, a 50-year-old woman from Friendswood, Texas, was found dead in her backyard, apparently the victim of her own dog or dogs, of which there were three. On March 23, a two-year-old Dallas-area girl was fatally mauled by her parents' dog at their mobile home.
Both deaths were in Texas, a state that still follows the one-bite rule. Under this ancient British legal doctrine, the owner of any domestic animal is not held responsible for the first bite, the first mauling, or the first killing by each and every one of his animals. (See The One-Bite Rule.)
Texas is in a minority of states that continues to salute the flag of Great Britain when it comes to dog bite laws. (For lists of states that follow or have abrogated the one-bite rule, see Legal Rights of Dog Bite Victims in the USA.)
