Investigators still probing dog attack that killed girl, 9, who was playing in yard of LI home
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS – First Posted: November 09, 2015 – 8:34 pm – Last Updated: November 09, 2015 – 8:34 pm
ELMONT, New York — Police have identified the 9-year-old girl who died after being attacked by a pit bull while playing in the backyard of a Long Island home.
Authorities said Monday they were still investigating the circumstance of the attack on Amiyah (ah-MEE-yah) Dunston.
The young girl died Sunday after being attacked by the dog in the yard of an Elmont home.
Acting Nassau District Attorney Madeline Singas says investigators are still trying to determine whether anyone should be criminally charged.
She says there was no indication the dog was dangerous.
The dog’s owner, Carlyle Arnold, was arrested on an unrelated charge of violating an order of protection and held on $10,000 bail. His attorney did not return a call for comment.
Grief counselors were being sent to the young girl’s elementary school.
http://www.greenfieldreporter.com/view/story/1199e923dca548738826a0637fe33fe0/NY–Child-Dog-Attack
9-YEAR-OLD GIRL DIES FROM INJURIES SUSTAINED IN ELMONT PIT BULL ATTACK
– By Lucy Yang – Sunday, November 08, 2015
ELMONT (WABC) – “An Angel on Earth” – that is how family and friends will remember the 9-year-old girl who was mauled to death by a pit bull in the backyard of a home in Elmont on Sunday.“I wish I could turn back time – too sweet to go,” says family friend Stacie Case.
Three young girls were playing, including the victim were playing in the backyard of the home on Holland Ave. Sunday morning when a pit bull attacked. Witnesses say the dog latched onto her neck, and head, and shook her like a rag doll.
“A woman in the house attempted to pull the pit bull off of her. She could not, and called 911,” said Detective Michael Bitsko of the Nassau County Police Department.
“She tried with a broom – too weak, too scared,” said neighbor Novelette Wilson.
By the time police arrived, Eyewitness News is told that two officers ran to the back, while one went through the house to the rear door.
“The pit bull got distracted and charge at the officer,” adds Detective Bisko.
The officer fired, killing the dog, giving the other officers time to get to the girl.
The victim was rushed to Franklin Hospital/LIJ, but surgeons could not mend what the dog had done. She was pronounced dead a few hours later.
9-Year-Old Girl Playing With Friends in Yard Killed in NY Pit Bull Attack
4 NBC New York – 11/8/15
There had been no previous complaints to police about the dog, Bitsko said, adding that he didn’t know why the dog attacked the girl.
The dog’s owner, Carlyle Arnold, 29, lives in a second-floor apartment of the house. He was arrested on an unrelated charge of violating an order of protection and was being questioned about the attack.
For our Princess Amiyah
We, the family and friends of Amiyah Kayla Dunston are sadden by the tragic loss of our princess. She was a beautiful, smart and loving girl who touched the lives of all who knew her. We are raising money for her funeral arrangements, and potential grief counseling for the family. Thank you very much for your love and support.
Love,
The family and friends of Amiyah
**update 11/13/2015**
Hi, my name is Nicole C Robinson from Long Island, NY. I am the Godmother of Amiyah Dunston, who passed away on 11/8/2015 from being attacked by a pitbull. The reason why many and myself wanted to start the gofund me page was to help my bestfriend and her family pay for funeral costs. This event has truly been rough because we are still in shock that this has happened to her. So as Amiyah’s Godmother, the least I could do was campaign for her.
We are over joyed with the amount of donations that we have received in honor of Amiyah and appreciate all that are continuing to come in. We had no idea that we would raise the amount that we have so far but at the same time Amiyah was loved by many. The donations will also assist with grief counseling.
Amiyah was a beautiful, smart, talented child who had a heart of gold. She had an impact on all who met her. She brought out the best in us. It has been an honor to hold the title “Godmother” for her and now she is Our Guardian Angel.
Funeral Arrangements are as follows:
Friday 11/13/2015 3-9 is the wake service
Saturday 11/14/2015 is at 9:30 am with the burial following after service. All are being held at Zion Cathedral Church in Freeport, NY.
Thank you all again for your support and donations!
Nicole C Robinson
https://www.gofundme.com/5q9bzvhw
Family mourns loving daughter mauled to death by pit bull
The dog’s owner, Carlyle Arnold (right), was arrested at the scene on charges unrelated to the dog attack. Photo: Ellis Kaplan
The shattered family of a little girl mauled to death by a pit bill on Long Island over the weekendmourned the loss of their ”princess” Monday — as cops weighed whether to bring criminal charges against the dog’s owner.
Mayra Castillo, the devastated mom of Amiyah Dunston of Baldwin, clutched her 9-year-old daughter’s denim jacket as she left her home with friends to pick out funeral clothes for the girl, family said.
“Amiyah Kayla was a phenomenal little girl who has touched many lives with her presence, smiles and laughs. We thank you for all your support and prayers,” Brian Willis, Castillo’s fiancé, who helped raise Amiyah, said to reporters. “Just please let us mourn our terrible, tragic loss.”
Amiyah was visiting her biological father, Tramel Dunston, at 236 Holland Ave. when she was attacked by the pit bull named Kane at around 10:30 a.m. Sunday, according to Willis.
Dunston had been crashing at the Elmont home and was friends with the dog’s owner, Carlyle Arnold, Willis said.
Read more: http://nypost.com/2015/11/09/family-mourns-loving-daughter-mauled-to-death-by-pit-bull/
Girl, 9, killed by dog on Long Island identified
ELMONT, N.Y. — A 9-year-old girl who died after she was attacked by a dog during a play date on Long Island was identified Monday, police in Nassau County said.
Amiyah Dunston, of Baldwin, was mauled in the backyard of a home on Holland Avenue in Elmont about 10:30 a.m. Sunday, police said.
Officers were called to the scene where they found the 9-year-old being attacked by a male pit bull, police said. When one of the officers opened the door to the backyard, the dog stopped attacking the girl and charged toward the officer, who pulled out their service weapons and fired several rounds, killing the animal, police said.
Dunston was rushed to a hospital in critical condition. She died about three hours later, police said.
Read more: http://pix11.com/2015/11/09/girl-9-killed-by-dog-on-long-island-identified/
2015 Dog Bite Fatality: Tenant’s Pit Bull Kills Visiting Child on Long Island
DogsBite.org reports
Child Identified
UPDATE 11/09/15: Nassau County officials have identified the child who was stuck down by the powerful jaws of a pit bull on Sunday. Amiyah Dunston, 9-years old of Baldwin, was visiting a home on Holland Avenue and playing with two other girls outside when a pit bull suddenly executed the killing bite — the dog latched onto her face and neck and shook her violently. The male pit bull belongs to Carlyle Arnold, who is a tenant on the second floor of the building.
Arnold’s Facebook page indicates this pit bull was possibly being trained for bite work. The male pit bull, dubbed “The Beast” by Arnold, is also wearing a weighted collar, as seen on O’Brien’s Canine Supply website that specializes in products for pit bull terriers. The organization notes on their home page that since 1984, they have enjoyed keeping some of the “best old family pit bull lines” which is code language for saying, keeping some of the “best old family fighting bloodlines.”
Lastly, an update by the New York Post today reports that the dog is a 2-year old male pit bull named Kane. The Post also notes that Arnold is “engaged in a playful tug of war” in the Facebook photo, while wearing the weighted collar and clenching down on the ropes of a tug training toy. Whether Arnold was training for bite work or not, this same equipment is used for bite work training and certainly this activity is designed to strengthen the already powerful jaws of a pit bull.
American Pit Bull Terrier
The ‘bull and terrier’ type was originally developed in England in the early 19th century. The lineage goes back to the mastiff / molosser types, including what we now call the Olde English Bulldogge, that were used for bear-, bull- and horse-baiting from the 12ththrough the 18th century. This isn’t the bear-baiting we think of today, when hunters feed bears in order to bring them out in the open to shoot them. Rather, the bear, bull or horse was confined in a public arena where the mastiff ‘bulldogs’ would slowly tear them apart alive for the public’s amusement1,2,3,4,5.
The popularity of this ‘sport’ declined as education became more emphasized in urban society of the Industrial Revolution and literacy among the population grew (from about 30% in the 17th century to 62% by 1800)6. The ‘sport’ was banned altogether by Act of Parliament in 1835.
The lovers of blood ‘sports’ turned to dogfighting to satisfy their fancy, breeding the large, mastiff-type bulldogs to smaller working terriers to get dogs both smaller and more agile, easier to keep and to hide, but just as willing to attack and fight to the death. With the rise of the kennel clubs and the desire to distinguish dogs by looks and pedigree as well as by performance, this ‘bull and terrier’ type eventually divided into many official breeds. They all share the same ancestry and function, distinguishing themselves mostly by slight differences in appearance.
Click here to learn more about the American Pit Bull Terrier
2015 Dog Bite Related Fatalities in the U.S.
Updated after each fatality following fact finding research on Protect Children From Pit Bulls & Other Dangerous Dogs on Facebook
35 Dog Bite Related Fatality
by Breed.
27 by Pit Bull/Pit Bull Mix
2 by Rottweiler
1 by Golden/mixed breed
1 by American bulldog, Rhodesian Ridgeback, Labrador mix
4 Unknown/Pending
By Age :
14 Children
22 Adult
By State :
NM – 1 death
MD – 1 death
FL – 3 death
IA – 1 death
AR – 1 death
PA – 1 death
W. VA – 1 death
TX – 5 death
SD – 1 death
AR – 1 death
GA – 1 death
NV – 1 death
IL – 1 death
OK – 3 death
NC – 2 death
OH – 1 death
SC – 1 death
AL – 1 death
CA – 3 death
WV – 1 death
NY – 2 death
TN – 1 death
MI – 2 death
Names and ages of the deceased:
Unidentified Native American – about 40 y,o. – Gallup, NM – Pack of Feral Dogs [1.2.15]
Eugene W. Smith – 87- Frederick, MD – 1 Pit Bull [1.7.15]
Declin Moss – 18 months – Brooksville, FL – 2 Pit Bulls [1.19.15]
Malaki Mildward – 7yrs old – College Springs, IA – 2 Pit Bull/Bull Dog Mix [1.22.15]
Fredrick Crutchfield – 63 yrs old – Johnson county, AR – Pit Bull [ 2.4.15]
TayLynn DeVaughn – 2 yrs old – Pittsburgh, PA – Pit Bull [2.22.15]
Roy Higgenbotham – 62 yrs old – WHEELING, W.Va. – Pit Bull [3.8.15]
Betty Wood – 78 yrs old – SULPHUR SPRINGS, TX – Rottweiler [3.12.15]
Julia Charging Whirlwind – 49 yrs old – WHITE RIVER, SD – Pending [3.14.15]
Detrick Johnson – 36 yrs old – JEFFERSON COUNTY, AR – 7 Pit Bulls [3.21.15]
Neta Lee Adams – 81 yrs old – WASHINGTON, GA – Pending [3.31.15]
Kenneth Ford – 79 yrs old – NYE COUNTY, NV – Pit Bulls [4.14.15]
Brayden Wilson – 2 months old – Dallas, TX – Pit Bull [4.19.15]
Gaege Anthony Ramirez – 7 yrs old – NEW BRAUNFELS, TX – Pending [5.2.15]
James W. Nevils III – 5 yrs old – Chicago, IL – Pit Bull – [5.25.15]
Jordon Tyson Collins – 3 yrs old – Lawton, OK – Pit Bull – [6.28.15]
Norberto Legarda – 83 yrs old – Pecos, TX – Pit Bulls – [7.2.15]
Joshua Phillip Strother – 6 yrs old – Hendersonville, NC – Pit Bull – [7.7.15]
Annie L. Williams – 71 yrs old – Shaker Heights, OH – Pit Bull – [7.12.15]
Carolyn Lamp – 67 yrs old – COWETA, Ok – 3 Pit Bull/1 Rottweiler – [7.24.15]
Porsche Nicole Cartee – 25 yrs old – SPARTANBURG, SC – Pit Bull – [8.22.15]
Cathy Wheatcraft – 48 yrs old – DAVIE COUNTY, N.C. – Pit Bull – [8.24.15]
Barbara McCormick – 65 yrs old – Autauga County , AL – Golden/Mix – [8.2.15]
Emilio Rios Sr – 65 yrs old – Riverside County, CA. Pit Bulls – [8.8.15]
Carmen Reigada – 91 yrs old – Miami, FL. – American bulldog,Rhodesian Ridgeback, Labrador mix – [9.22.15]
Lamarkus Hakeem Hicks – 2 yrs old – Martinsburg, WV – Pit Bull – [9.28.15]
Edgar Brown – 60 yrs old – OKLAHOMA CITY, OK. – Pit Bulls – [10.16.15]
Tanner Smith – 5 yrs old – Vidor, TX – Pit Bulls – [10.19.15]
Amiyah Dunston – 9 yrs old – Elmont, NY – Pit Bull – [11.8.15]
Anthony Riggs – 57 yrs old – Madison County ,TN – Rottweiler – [11.12.15]
Carter Hartle – 11 months old – MARSHALL, NY – Pit Bull – [11.15.15]
Xavier Strickland – 4 yrs old – Detroit, MI – Pit Bulls – [12.2.15]
Rebecca Lillian-Kay Hardy – 22 yrs old – Port Huron, MI – Pit Bull, Husky-mix – [12.3.15]
Maria Torres – 57 yrs old – Gridley, CA – Pit Bulls – [12.16.15]
Nyjah Espinosa – 2 yrs old – Miami-Dade, Fl – Pit Bull Type (American Bulldog) – [12.20.15]
On average in 2015 someone was killed by a pit bull every 13 days. Some of these pit bull attacks were from the family dog that was well trained and had never shown signs of aggression before. The only common factor in these severe and often fatal attacks is not abuse or lack of training, it is breed. Choose the breed of dog you trust the lives of your loved ones with wisely.