Pit bull attacks same victim twice

Fellow Injury Board blogger Barry Doyle writes about a dog bite case where liability seems very clear cut.

In this terrifying case, a woman was visiting her friend when she noticed that the friend’s pit bull was acting aggressively. The visitor, who had been bitten in the leg by the same dog in December 2005, tried to hide in the bathroom, but the dog broke the door down to attack her.

Horrifying.

And as Barry Doyle points out, the owner likely can be held liable for this second attack.

The traditional rule of liability in dog bite cases is that the owner must have notice of the dangerous propensities of the animal. This is sometimes referred to as the “one bite rule”, meaning that the owner is clearly put on notice of the dangerous propensities of the animal after it bites one other victim.