2012 dog bite fatalities ::

Information gathered by DogsBite.org is verifiable1 through Internet archive services. Our Fatality Citations section documents each source used in our dog bite-related fatality research.

2012 victims

Mable McCallister

84-years old | Cleveland, TN

Mable McCallister, 84-years old, was attacked by her grandson's pit bull on December 18, 2011. Police officers said that she was bitten in her face and neck. The injuries caused her hospitalization in Erlanger hospital's trauma unit for over four days, according to Bradley County Medical Examiner Dr. Jeffery Miller. Mable died on New Year's Eve while in hospice care. The owner of the pit bull, Jerry Harrison, Jr., lived on his father's property where several other pit bulls were kept. No one from the Harrison family called police or animal control after the attack. "We became aware of the dog attack only after Ms. McCallister was brought to Erlanger," Officer Evie West said. The Harrisons also "home-quarantined" the pit bull after the incident; it's unknown if the dog was ever put down. The victim's great-granddaughter left a message at the news article: "A woman, an amazing woman dies from this dog and nothing is being done about it."

Date of death:	December 31, 20112	Chained:	Unknown
Breed of dog:	Pit bull	Relationship to dog:	Family
Sex of dog:	Unknown	Owner of dog:	Grandson
Spay/Neuter:	Unknown	Multiple dogs:	No
On/Off property:	On	Criminal charges:	No

Jace Valdez

16-months old | Magnolia, TX

Jace Valdez, 16-months old, was mauled to death by a pit bull while in the care of his grandmother. His grandparents owned the 7-year old male dog, and his grandmother was the only adult present during incident. Arriving deputies shot and killed the pit bull inside the home. Though not physically injured in the attack, the grandmother was immediately hospitalized for shock. Several days after the deadly attack, the child's father, Jeremy Valdez, issued a statement to the media. "Baby Jace had been in Mr. Valdez’s sole care and custody for over the past year; however the child was visiting his mother for the week where she resides with her parents at their home in Montgomery County and where the attack occurred." At the time of the attack, Jace's mother was visiting friends in Spring. Detectives continue to investigate the child's death. As of January 26, 2012, no criminal charges have been brought.

Date of death:	January 14, 2012	Chained:	No
Breed of dog:	Pit bull	Relationship to dog:	Family
Sex of dog:	Male	Owner of dog:	Grandparents
Spay/Neuter:	Unknown	Multiple dogs:	No
On/Off property:	On	Criminal charges:	Pending

John Doe

6-years old | Oak Grove, KY

John Doe, 6-years old, was mauled to death by a medical service dog that had allegedly been trained to help a Fort Campbell serviceman who suffers from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Part of the dog's training was to wake its owner up in the event he was experiencing a nightmare. Instead, the animal brutally mauled a child to death. At the time of the attack, the young boy and his family were visiting the Fort Campbell serviceman's home. The boy was outside in the backyard with the service dog, described as a "small German shepherd," when it attacked. The dog inflicted severe facial injuries to the boy. He was helicoptered to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, but did not survive. The serviceman surrendered his service dog along with two other dogs to authorities. The service dog was quickly put down. No identities were released. As of February 18, 2012, there is no new information about this incident.

Date of death:	January 30, 2012	Chained:	No
Breed of dog:	German shepherd	Relationship to dog:	Nonfamily
Sex of dog:	Unknown	Owner of dog:	Family Friend
Spay/Neuter:	Unknown	Multiple dogs:	No
On/Off property:	On	Criminal charges:	Pending

DogsBite.org contains verifiable information about U.S. citizens killed by dogs including the name and age of each victim, location of attack, dog breed and up to 12 other factors. Information was gathered through media accounts that were available at the time of the attack or found through Internet archives, including: Google News Archive and AccessMyLibrary. Each fatality also lists "source citations," which links to its related citations.
Mable McCallister's death was first reported January 3, 2012. Mable is included in the 2012 dog bite fatality statistical data and excluded from 2011.