Failure of woman to come forward could be aggravating factor in dog mauling case: lawyer

According to a lawyer, the fact a woman has failed to come forward after a large, muscular dog in her care mauled and killed a five-pound Maltipoo near Second Beach in Stanley Park last week could be held against her if the case ever winds up before the courts.

Dozens of people witnessed the attack last Monday afternoon near the beach’s concession stand.

In video of the attack, the larger dog appears to be off-leash until a dark-haired woman clips one onto its collar and quickly leads it away while bystanders unsuccessfully attempt to stop her.

"Regardless if she was the owner or just a caretaker, turn yourself in. I think it was just a big coward move to just run,” AJ Tay said in an interview with CTV News on Thursday.

Tay and his partner, who owned Sky, the three-year-old dog that died, have set up a Facebook page in the hopes someone from the public can help track the woman down.

City of Vancouver Animal Services is leading an investigation into what happened, with assistance from Vancouver police.

If animal control can identify the woman and the dog as part of its investigation, it could levy fines for bylaw infractions.

"Underlying all of this, as I say, is responsible dog ownership. To have a dog means that the person and the dog need to be in sync. The person needs to be able to control their dog,” said Victoria Shroff, a lawyer specializing in animal law.

She tells CTV News if the dog that killed Sky is identified, it will be up to a judge to determine if it should be deemed a dangerous animal and potentially put down.

That’s ultimately what happened to Punky, an Australian cattle dog that bit and seriously injured a woman in an off-leash portion of Spanish Banks in 2017.

Punky spent years on doggy death row at the city’s animal services building while his owner appealed a decision that he be destroyed.

In the end, the Supreme Court of Canada declined to hear a final appeal and Punky was put down.

The dog’s owner, Susan Santics, willingly participated in the investigation from the start and Shoff represented her in the case.

“When animal control got in touch with her, she complied,” said Shroff. “And in this case we have somebody who has not been there. And that’s the salient factor in this case involving Sky.”

Shroff says a judge could consider the fact the woman has not yet come forward to take responsibility to be an aggravating factor if the case winds up in court.