Pit Bull Deflates All Four Tires of Cumberland County Deputy's Cruiser
Neighbor's Pit BullUPDATE 09/01/09: In a story that has been picked up by nearly
250 news outlets across the U.S., it appears that initial reports about Gloria Bass being the owner of the pit bull were in error. It is now being reported that the dog’s owner is "Bass' next-door neighbor." The unnamed neighbor and pit bull owner will be billed $500 for the new set of tires required for Deputy Lynn Lavallis' cruiser. It is unknown if the pit bull owner will also be fined for having a "dog at large."
08/31/09: Tire Flattener, A Risky Pit Bull?Cumberland County, NC - Pit bulls have a long history of attacking automobile tires. On
page 13 of Donald Clifford's, "
Dos and Don'ts Concerning Vicious Dogs," (Provided by the AVMA Professional Liability Insurance Trust, 1993), he notes, "Two repairmen were pulling away after repairing a stereo when a two-year old pit bull broke loose and attacked and flattened all four tires." Clifford's note references a July 23, 1988 Post Courier article (Charleston, South Carolina).
Prior to the 2007 death of
Jennifer Lowe by Charles Smallwood's two pit bulls, the dogs had been declared "dangerous" after attacking two police cruisers. It is learned in 2009 that a pit bull named "Caine," which bore Smallwood's pit bulls, attacked
Carletta Bailey sending her to the hospital. When police arrived on that scene, a nearby chained pit bull flattened a deputy's front tire. Along with Caine, the tire flattening pit bull was
declared dangerous and
euthanized.
Ironically, in the below story, the 911 call is in regards to a woman's daughter being chased by a dog trying the bite the back tire of the girl's bike:
"The tires on a Cumberland County deputy's patrol car were no match for a pit bull who bit and flattened them Sunday, according to the sheriff's office.
The dog deflated all four tires on a cruiser responding to a complaint call about another dog, said Debbie Tanna, spokeswoman for the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office.
The call was placed at 6:20 p.m. by Gloria Bass of the 6600 block of Fire Department Road in Hope Mills, Tanna said.
Bass had called 911 to report that a dog was chasing her daughter, who was riding a bicycle, and trying to bite the back tire.
Deputy Lynn Lavallis was sent to investigate and found nothing when she arrived - no dog and no girl riding a bicycle, Tanna said.
Lavallis parked her cruiser in Bass' driveway and went to speak with the woman.
That's when Bass' dog, a pit bull, went on the attack, biting the four tires.
"The dog didn't try to attack the deputy," Tanna said. "He just doesn't like tires."
A wrecker from the county's vehicle maintenance fleet brought four new tires and put them on the car, Tanna said.
The bill for the patrol vehicle was $504.60, Tanna said."
Related articles:03/13/09:
Caine -- Producer of Pit Bull that Killed Jennifer Lowe -- Attacks Woman11/15/07:
2007 Fatality: Jennifer Lowe, Killed by Two Pit Bulls, No Charges Filed
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