2-year-old boy dies in dog attack in W.Va.
– Posted on Sep 29, 2015 – by Dave McMillion
BAKER HEIGHTS, W.Va. — A 2-year-old boy died Monday after he was attacked by a neighbor’s boxer-mix dog on Charles Town Road in Baker Heights, according to the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Department.
The boy was found unresponsive near the dog on Monday at about 5 p.m. in the neighbor’s yard southeast of Martinsburg, a sheriff’s department news release said.
The neighbor’s yard is about four houses away from the boy’s home, sheriff’s department spokesman Lt. Willie Johnson said Tuesday afternoon.
The owner of the dog found the boy, the sheriff’s department said.
The boy was taken to Berkeley County Medical Center in Martinsburg, W.Va., and later was flown to another medical facility, the department said.
Johnson said he did not know where the boy was flown or what type of injuries he sustained. He also did not have the boy’s name, and had not confirmed the name of the dog’s owner.
https://www.facebook.com/TheHeraldMail/posts/10155262551633644
Child dies following dog attack
September 30, 2015 – , Journal News
MARTINSBURG – A two-year-old boy died after suffering severe injuries from a dog attack Monday evening in the area of Baker Heights.
http://www.journal-news.net/page/content.detail/id/643569.html
Future of dog who killed toddler undetermined
October 1, 2015 – , Journal News
MARTINSBURG – There is no official plan yet to euthanize the dog that attacked and killed a two-year-old boy Monday evening, according to Lt. Willie Johnson with the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Department.
Obituary for Lamarkus Hicks
Born February 11, 2013 in Martinsburg, WV he is the son of Kayla Michelle Tucker.
In addition to his mother, he is survived by one brother, Kayden Lamont Porter, Darius Porter (Lamarkus’ Dad), Kimberly Tucker (maternal grandmother), Anthony Crone (maternal step-grandfather), Robert S. Phipps (maternal grandfather), Robert and Nancy Tucker (great-grandparents), Leesa Stitt (grandmother), three cousins, Ja’ Kobi Porter, JaCary Tucker, and Zaylin Washington; and a number of aunts and uncles.
Services and interment are private.
Arrangements by Brown Funeral Home.
No criminal charges in dog-attack death of 2-year-old W.Va. boy
– Posted on Oct 15, 2015 – by Matthew Umstead
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — Criminal charges will not be filed in the Sept. 28 death of a 2-year-old boy who died after being bitten by a neighbor’s boxer-mix dog in Baker Heights, according to Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney Pamela Games-Neely.
“It’s just a horrible, horrible tragedy on all sides,” Games-Neely said Thursday of evidence that indicates the death of Lemarkus Hicks was accidental and not a mauling case.
Child-neglect charges also will not be filed, Games-Neely said.
The cause and manner of death has yet to be released by the medical examiner’s office in Washington, D.C., but Games-Neely said evidence indicates the child died at Children’s Hospital from a facial bite.
Lemarkus was found unresponsive about 5 p.m. near the dog in the neighbor’s yard off Charles Town Road southeast of Martinsburg, the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Department said.
The dog, which was tied up, has since been euthanized by Berkeley County Animal Control, Games-Neely said.
The dog was voluntarily turned over to the county by its owner due to the child’s death, and no prior incidents involving the dog had been reported, she said.
Games-Neely also said there is no evidence that the dog was encouraged to attack Lemarkus, or that the child antagonized the animal, but she conceded that “nobody knows what happened in that one instant.”
2015 Dog Bite Fatality: 2-Year Old Boy Fatally Attacked by Pit Bull-Mix in West Virginia
DogsBite.org reports
Photographs of Dog
UPDATE 11/30/15: The family of Lamarkus Hicks provided us photographs of the chained dog that killed Lamarkus taken by the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office after the attack. The dog, named Bubba, was previously described in news reports as a “boxer-mix” and a medium sized brown “mixed-breed.” Our research indicates that Bubba was a buckskin pit bull-mix born on July 1, 2014 with three littermates after the mating of a male pit bull-mix and purebred female pit bull.
We were able to piece together the dog’s lineage by the many public photos on the dog owners’ Facebook pages, Joseph Creamer and Debra Snow. Our PDF about Bubba’s lineage walks readers through the basics and shows that the sire, Bad Butts, a pit bull-mix, is where the mix is from. It is a war dog descendant mastiff-type mix. The dam, Lexi, is a purebred brindle pit bull and appears to have been the only female in the 
household during the period of the July 2014 litter.1
Our research also indicates that Bubba was just shy of 15-months old when it fatally attacked Lamarkus on September 28, 2015, matching the age provided by its owner after the dog was euthanized on October 14.
After seeing the on scene photographs of Bubba, most will agree with our assessment that the dog is a pit bull-mix. Others may want to review our lineage PDF that contains images of the July 2014 litter, the sire, dam and more. Two days after the death of Lamarkus, Creamer agreed to surrender Bubba for euthanasia and Lexi for adoption at the county pound. There was also a 2015 “crop” of new puppies at that time. Lamarkus’ family believes they were given away to friends.
American Pit Bull Terrier
The APBT is of medium intelligence, and it is athletic. They have plenty of energy and exuberance for life. They are affectionate companions are often referred to as a “nanny dog”, which leads many families to believe that they are suitable companions for children. Many can live happily with children and never have an issue, but there are many cases of the family pit bull suddenly attacking or killing a child in the household. The Pit Bull advocacy group BADRAP recently retracted their original “nanny dog” statements (https://www.facebook.com/BADRAP.org/posts/10151460774472399)13. In 2013 and 2014, in the United States, 27 children were killed by Pit Bulls and their mixes. Most of these children were killed by family pet pit bulls that had never been neglected or abused and had always loved the child. As with all breeds, the traits needed for their original tasks remain in the dogs – in this case, the sudden explosive aggression that was necessary to survive in the fighting pit. An APBT may never show this aggression, but if it does there will be no warning and the attack will not be easy to stop. Extreme caution should always be taken when this breed interacts with children. They are fun loving dogs that have “clownish” behaviors. Despite, their many positive qualities, this breed may not be suitable for everyone. Their high energy requires a family that can accommodate and appreciate this aspect of their personality. They usually do best with active families. Many American Pit Bull Terriers get calmer as they age and an older dog may work for a more reserved family.
Click here to learn more about the American Pit Bull Terrier
“Misunderstood Nanny Dogs” by J Thomas Beasley. From the book – Page 40 & 41:
“In fact, John Paul Scott and John L. Fuller carried out a series of selective breeding experiments at the Jackson Laboratories in Bar Harbor, Maine. “By happy chance, their results revealed a simple rule that seems to work. Their general conclusion was that a mixed breed dog is most likely to act like the breed that it most looks like.”
Thus, the conclusion to be reached is that if it looks like a pit bull, it probably is a pit bull. Which is why most breed-specific legislation is aimed at the “pit bull class” of dogs that includes its close mixes. Pit bull mixes that look a lot like pit bulls have most of the same personality and genetic traits of pure bred pit bulls, and should be regulated the same way.”
Order your copy today: http://www.amazon.com/Misunderstood-Nanny-Dogs-Objective-Concerning/dp/150872671X
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.