Pitbull fatally mauled 95-year-old Connecticut woman at home of animal rights activist
By CHRISTINE DEMPSEY and NICHOLAS RONDINONE
HARTFORD COURANT
NOV 09, 2019 | 3:37 PM
A 95-year-old woman died after being mauled by a pit bull at the Suffield home of an animal rights activist and former state representative.
The Hartford Courant - We are currently unavailable in your region
Janet D’Aleo, of Enfield, died at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield after being bitten Wednesday, police said Friday. They said the dog lived at 584 Thrall Ave., the home of former state Rep. Annie Hornish.
Hornish said she arrived home after the incident occurred and was told that the dog, named Dexter, was reacting to being hit repeatedly with a metal stool by D’Aleo’s home health aide. The aide apparently thought the dog was greeting the woman too enthusiastically when he jumped on D’Aleo, who uses a walker. Her mother, Agnes Wosko, uses a wheelchair.
“It seems as if the dog got excited and it was overexuberant," Hornish said. "[The dog] jumped on a friend with a walker and she fell backward and we believe that’s what killed her.”
The aide hit the dog so hard, one of the legs of the stool bent, Hornich said.
D’Aleo, a longtime friend of Wosko’s, has visited the home before and has been around the dog a number of times without any problems, Hornish said.
[Breaking News] Decades after he confessed, a New Haven man is under arrest for the 32-year-old double murder of Hamden father and son »
“The dog has no history, whatsoever, of aggression," she said. "The dog has been around children and has been around Janet D’Aleo multiple times. These are not breed-specific issues and that is something people who have pit bulls understand.”
“It’s a horrible tragedy," Hornish said. "We lost a very good friend of the family. We do think this was an accident, a very unfortunate accident. We are still grieving.”
According to police, dispatchers received a call about the attack at 2:53 p.m. Wednesday. The caller said a woman had been bitten and was bleeding.
First responders saw that her injuries were life-threatening and she was rushed to the hospital, where she died.
[Breaking News] Female Quinnipiac University student sexually assaulted near campus, police say »
Part of the police investigation involves finding out where the dog is from, the police chief said.
“The detective assigned and our animal control officer are still working to gather additional information before drawing any conclusions,” Brown said. “We’re trying to find out about the pedigree of this animal. If it was a rescue, where did it come from?”
It’s too early to determine whether there will be any arrests, he said.
The Massachusetts Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said that officials are examining D’Aleo’s body, but on Friday afternoon had not yet determined the cause or manner of D’Aleo’s death.
[Breaking News] West Hartford’s Beth Kerrigan was second-highest vote-getter in last week’s election, but might not be named deputy mayor »
LATEST BREAKING NEWS
“We don’t make an assessment of whether probable cause exists for an arrest until we have all the facts,” Brown said.
Hornish was a member of the state House of Representatives from 2009 to 2011. She is listed online as the Connecticut Senior State Director of the Humane Society of the United States.
During her time in the legislature she worked to fight animal cruelty, opposing puppy mills and the sale of shark fins. She also is against the legalization of bear hunting
By CHRISTINE DEMPSEY and NICHOLAS RONDINONE
HARTFORD COURANT
NOV 09, 2019 | 3:37 PM
A 95-year-old woman died after being mauled by a pit bull at the Suffield home of an animal rights activist and former state representative.
The Hartford Courant - We are currently unavailable in your region
Janet D’Aleo, of Enfield, died at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield after being bitten Wednesday, police said Friday. They said the dog lived at 584 Thrall Ave., the home of former state Rep. Annie Hornish.
Hornish said she arrived home after the incident occurred and was told that the dog, named Dexter, was reacting to being hit repeatedly with a metal stool by D’Aleo’s home health aide. The aide apparently thought the dog was greeting the woman too enthusiastically when he jumped on D’Aleo, who uses a walker. Her mother, Agnes Wosko, uses a wheelchair.
“It seems as if the dog got excited and it was overexuberant," Hornish said. "[The dog] jumped on a friend with a walker and she fell backward and we believe that’s what killed her.”
The aide hit the dog so hard, one of the legs of the stool bent, Hornich said.
D’Aleo, a longtime friend of Wosko’s, has visited the home before and has been around the dog a number of times without any problems, Hornish said.
[Breaking News] Decades after he confessed, a New Haven man is under arrest for the 32-year-old double murder of Hamden father and son »
“The dog has no history, whatsoever, of aggression," she said. "The dog has been around children and has been around Janet D’Aleo multiple times. These are not breed-specific issues and that is something people who have pit bulls understand.”
“It’s a horrible tragedy," Hornish said. "We lost a very good friend of the family. We do think this was an accident, a very unfortunate accident. We are still grieving.”
According to police, dispatchers received a call about the attack at 2:53 p.m. Wednesday. The caller said a woman had been bitten and was bleeding.
First responders saw that her injuries were life-threatening and she was rushed to the hospital, where she died.
[Breaking News] Female Quinnipiac University student sexually assaulted near campus, police say »
Part of the police investigation involves finding out where the dog is from, the police chief said.
“The detective assigned and our animal control officer are still working to gather additional information before drawing any conclusions,” Brown said. “We’re trying to find out about the pedigree of this animal. If it was a rescue, where did it come from?”
It’s too early to determine whether there will be any arrests, he said.
The Massachusetts Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said that officials are examining D’Aleo’s body, but on Friday afternoon had not yet determined the cause or manner of D’Aleo’s death.
[Breaking News] West Hartford’s Beth Kerrigan was second-highest vote-getter in last week’s election, but might not be named deputy mayor »
LATEST BREAKING NEWS
-
Middletown woman charged with vehicular homicide in death of 74-year-old Hamden man this spring
4m -
Decades after he confessed, a New Haven man is under arrest for the 32-year-old double murder of Hamden father and son
56m -
Female Quinnipiac University student sexually assaulted near campus, police say
1h
“We don’t make an assessment of whether probable cause exists for an arrest until we have all the facts,” Brown said.
Hornish was a member of the state House of Representatives from 2009 to 2011. She is listed online as the Connecticut Senior State Director of the Humane Society of the United States.
During her time in the legislature she worked to fight animal cruelty, opposing puppy mills and the sale of shark fins. She also is against the legalization of bear hunting
Why the fukk was a pit and a 85 year near each other
