Lawsuit: 'Vicious dog' attacks girl selling school raffle tickets in Wichita Falls

Patrick Johnston | Wichita

A Wichita Falls father has sued a man after the man's dog allegedly attacked his daughter while she was selling raffle tickets for her school.

The lawsuit, filed Tuesday morning in the 78th District Court, alleges the incident happened on Jan. 25, 2018.

James Tapscott – named individually and as the next friend of his daughter, a minor – is seeking between $100,000 and $200,000 in damages.

According to the suit, the girl was selling raffle tickets for her school when she knocked on the door of Cameron Bledsoe, the defendant.

"Bledsoe negligently failed to keep his dog inside the house," the lawsuit states. "The dog ran past him and attacked (the minor), biting her ear off and causing lacerations to the back of her head that required 24 staples and 3 hours of plastic surgery."

The minor was reportedly taken to a Wichita Falls emergency room for treatment for the deep cuts and damage to her ear.

She "is left with permanent scarring on her head," the suit states.

The incident and resulting injuries and damages "were proximately caused by a dangerous domesticated animal owned or possessed" by Bledsoe, according to the lawsuit.

Tapscott claims in the suit that Bledsoe is "strictly liable for injuries" caused by his dog "because the animal had dangerous propensities abnormal to its class."

He also alleges that Bledsoe should have known or had reason to know that the animal "had dangerous propensities," and those issues were the "producing cause of the ... injuries."

The suit also bases the claims on the grounds of negligence and negligence per se for failing to keep the dog in an appropriately sized enclosure, a safe distance away from children and for not exercising a reasonable degree of care.

The city's "Vicious Dogs" ordinance, the suit states, "requires the owner of a vicious dog to securely confine said dog in an enclosure with walls or fencing of at least six feet in height" and display a warning sign on the property.

In the city's ordinance, a "vicious dog" is defined as an animal whose "behavior, would constitute a physical threat to human beings or other animals, fowl or livestock. A dog or cat that has, without provocation, attacked or bitten a human being or attacked another animal or livestock shall be considered vicious."

Any person owning a vicious dog must obtain a license, the ordinance states. The suit doesn't allege whether the animal was registered with the city.

The suit claims the minor "has endured physical pain and suffering, mental anguish, and disfigurement since the date of this occurrence, which, in all reasonable probability, will continue in the future."

The father "has incurred numerous medical bills on behalf of (the minor)" and will also continue to do so in the future, the suit states.