THE mum of a schoolboy mauled to death by an eight-stone dog called The Beast says she believes the sentences handed to its owners are “not even close to justice”.
Jack Lis, 10, was savaged by the XL bully as he visited a friend in Caerphilly, South Wales last November.
5
5
The devil dog’s owners Brandon Hayden, 19, and Amy Salter, 29, were jailed earlier this month.
Hayden had brought the animal home just five days before the attack.
He had seen it advertised “for free” on Facebook with a warning that it was “not good with other dogs”, and asked pal Salter to take care of it in her home.
A day after collecting it from a previous owner, the dog lunged at kids in a horrifying attack outside a shop.
Now Jack’s mum Emma Whitfield has launched a petition calling for Hayden and Salter’s sentences to be reviewed.
She told Wales Online: “Deep down I’m not sure whether I will ever get the chance to appeal, but I have to do everything in my power to try.
“If I don’t, I will feel as though I have failed Jack.”
Hayden was jailed for four years and six months, while Salter was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment. Both were also banned from owning another dog indefinitely.
Emma said Hayden’s crime was deemed “medium culpability” by the courts because the dog wasn’t used as a weapon or for intimidation.
“If that dog can’t be deemed intimidating I really don’t know what can,” she said.
She said footage of the animal trying to attack children outside the shop is chilling to watch.
“I wouldn’t ever want to even walk past that dog. To tell me that’s not intimidating is surely not right,” she added.
The court heard there were no adults in the house when Jack was fatally injured. The lad had initially been nervous of the dog, but was reassured.
As he walked towards Beast, it jumped up, knocked Jack to the floor and savaged him.
Emma said Hayden will be “out in a couple of years for good behaviour”, while Salter “stood laughing while that dog lunged at people and even children”.
“When you break it down like that, how is that justice for the death of my son? It’s not even close to justice,” she said.
“No sentence will ever be enough. But I do definitely think more could have been done.”
- You can sign the petition here.
5
5
5
Source: The Sun
