FAYETTE- Bonnie Clyde was attacked by a dog jumping out of a car window in Fayette last week. She was walking her own small dog while she was attacked. Clyde was knocked to the ground by the dog and bit multiple times.
Joe Vaughn was across the street working construction when the attack happened.
“I witnessed a dog jump out of a moving vehicle and it viciously lunged at a lady who was walking her small dog,” said Vaughn.
He ran over to the altercation and removed the dog from Clyde with help from employees from a nearby business, after a long struggle.
Vaughn and others said this dog attack is not the first in Fayette. Vaughn was attacked about a year ago and still has scars on his hand from the bites. His son’s dog was attacked by another dog earlier this month and had to go to the emergency room. Other residents shared similar stories about dog attacks in the area and say it makes the city unsafe.
“The aggressive, vicious animals that are not on leashes, that are running this city, are too much for us people that care, that are giving back to this town,” said Kelly Vaughn, a Fayette resident and business owner.
“It’s been an ongoing issue for a long time now. We’re tired,” said Monique Chapman.
Since Fayette does not employ an official animal control officer, the Fayette Police Department handles the animal calls.
Residents in Fayette said they are frustrated around the lack of police enforcement in these dog attacks.
“The worst part about this is that the dog was released to the owner that night,” Vaughn said. “After the dog had bit a human, it had bit a dog, it had bitten two workers.”
Section 205.250 of the Fayette City Ordinance states, “Any dog or other animal which bites, injures or attacks any person shall be immediately taken up and impounded by the City Police, or with a veterinarian willing to accept said animal for a period of ten (10) days.”
However, residents say this is not being followed. They say police reports are often not even filed for dog attacks or no tickets are given to the pet owners.
“Looking at the actual ordinance, tickets are not written the way that they should be,” said Tristan Head, a Fayette resident.
The Fayette Police Chief was not available for an interview on Tuesday.
Fayette residents brought their concerns to the Fayette City Council meeting on Tuesday. They asked for consistency in ticket enforcement and more police follow up on the attacks.
The City Council said they are looking into the ordinances and will continue to do so.
Joe and Kelly Vaughn own several rental properties in the area and are building a new restaurant right where Clyde was attacked last week. However, the continued attacks are causing them to push back the restaurant opening date.
“We refuse to open this restaurant with outdoor seating due to the aggressive animals or the dogs not on a leash that’s running this town,” Vaughn said. “The fact that if one of them were to come on my property and attack someone, then my insurance rates would go up.”
Local daycare owners Monique and Shelia Chapman worry for the safety of the children at their daycare. They say the same dog that bit Clyde lives across the street from them.
“If it leaps out of a car, it’s going to jump over a fence. We can’t take our kids outside to play,” said Chapman.
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