DELAND, Fla. – Two dogs that attacked and killed an 8-year-old boy near DeLand were euthanized on Thursday, according to Volusia County officials.
Michael Millett, 8, was attacked and killed on Jan. 13 when he was riding his bicycle around a subdivision with a friend and he stopped to pet one of the animals, according to Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood. The two dogs - described as a pit bull and a mixed breed - were then captured by Volusia County Animal Services officers.
Chitwood said Millett was “maliciously mauled, brutally mauled and killed.”
Deputies reported that the dogs escaped from their owner’s property and went into Millett’s neighborhood. The sheriff added that the owner of the dogs was not on the property at the time of the attack.
“By capturing the dogs alive, our team was also able to retain and turn over evidence necessary for the investigation,” said Randa Matusiak, public protection director. “This incident serves as a reminder that we all play a role in community safety and it is essential to report potential threats to proper authorities.”
Volusia sheriff’s investigators also collected DNA samples from the dogs. The sheriff said one of the challenges in building a case against the owner is that, although residents reported the dogs frequently got loose after the attack, none had reported it to animal services beforehand.
“With no prior reports of incidents involving the dogs on record, state law required a mandatory 10-business day quarantine period before euthanasia could proceed without authorization from the owner. During this time, the owner of the dogs had the opportunity to either relinquish ownership or file an appeal, but they did not,” county officials said in a statement.
The sheriff is collaborating with local legislators to propose a bill that would strengthen penalties.
“Both fines and criminal charges against anyone whose dogs do exactly what happened to Michael,” said Sheriff Mike Chitwood.
Chitwood believes the current law is not strong enough to hold the owner accountable.
“If the dogs under the law had either attacked somebody before or killed an animal and there was documentation of them being aggressive, the owner could be charged with a felony in the third degree. If none of those things exist then it’s a misdemeanor in the second degree. Somehow that does not seem right,” Chitwood explained.
Regarding charges against the owner, the sheriff stated that all evidence would be submitted to the state attorney’s office, which will ultimately decide on the charges.
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