Owning a dog comes with responsibility, not only to the animals but to those who come in contact with them. This is especially true if dogs are around young children. Recently, a Texas babysitter was charged after a 1-year-old was mauled to death by her pit bulls.
Police arrested Heather Rodriguez, 36, after the toddler she was babysitting, Jiryiah Johnson, died on her watch. She allegedly left the boy home alone with her 13-year-old daughter when the attack happened. And now, Rodriguez faces serious charges.
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The Texas woman was charged after dogs fatally attacked the 1-year-old.
Initially, Rodriquez was charged with injury to a child after her pit bulls mauled Jiryiah, CBS affiliate KENS5 reported. Investigators later filed two more charges against her. They include a state jail felony, injury to a child-reckless bodily injury, and endangering a child, imminent danger-causing bodily injury, a second-degree felony. Her bond was set at $100,000.
Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar briefed the press about what happened.
Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar explained what allegedly happened during a press briefing, per People. On October 7, Rodriguez allegedly left Jiryiah and her 13-year-old daughter home alone in a separate room from her dogs. The dogs somehow broke into the room and started attacking the kids.
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Salazar declared the teen's efforts to save Jiryiah 'heroic.'
The sheriff explained that at one point, the 13-year-old was engaged in a “tug-of-war” with a dog for the toddler. Although she retreated to a bathroom with Jiryiah, the pit bulls allegedly broke in again. Salazar called the teen’s efforts to save Jiryiah “heroic,” People reported, adding that she made “every possible effort” to save him.
Tragically, Jiryiah died from his injuries after suffering damage to his windpipe, preventing him from breathing on his own.
Salazar shared that four dogs were allegedly involved in the attack and that animal control would decide whether to put them down.
It apparently wasn't the first time one of the dogs had become aggressive.
In his press briefing, Salazar alleged a previous incident involved one of Rodriguez’s dogs. Someone called the sheriff’s office after the pit bull prevented them from leaving their vehicle. The sheriff alleged that Jiryiah’s parents did not know about this incident when they arranged for Rodriguez to babysit the toddler.
A GoFundMe was created to help pay for the toddler's funeral.
In the wake of Jiryiah’s death, a GoFundMe campaign is raising money for funeral expenses.
“Erika Castro is a friend and coworker of ours- she went through what no mom should have to go through on the 7th of October. Her sweet son, Jiryiah, has died following a brutal dog attack,” the campaign’s description reads.
It continued, “He underwent numerous procedures to stabilize his condition after being mauled, but the injuries were too severe. He succumbed to his injuries that night and now the family needs our help in paying for funeral expenses as well as the medical bills.”
The fund sits at almost $23,000 as of writing.
