A 59-year-old Schenectady man was attacked and killed by a pack ofmixed-breed pit bulls Wednesday in the backyard of a home along Central Avenue in Albany.
The victim has been identified as James Provost.
Albany Police Chief Eric Hawkins says dispatchers received the call of the attack around 5:54 p.m., several minutes later an officer arrived and found Provost being attacked by 8 or 9 dogs.
The officer fired his weapon, killing one of the dogs.
“The officer discharged his weapon in an attempt to stop the attack,” said Chief Hawkins.
Provost died at the scene.
Video CBS 6 obtained shows Provost sitting up in the backyard trying to push the dogs away, moments laterhe’s being dragged on the ground by the dogs bleeding and unconscious.
“We’re working very closely with the district attorney’s office to determine what if any criminal charges are applicable here,” said Chief Hawkins.
The dogs lived in the home next to where Provost was attacked. Police seized 23 mixed-breed pit bull dogs, 15 of them puppies.
“We put these dogs in a place where they can’t cause any further harm, a place where they can’t escape, a place where they can be kept while this matter is adjudicated, and once that happens, then some other authority will make some decision as to whether or not these dogs are released to home or whether some or all of these dogs are euthanized,” said Hawkins.
None of the dogs had current licenses in the City of Albany, all are currently being held at the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society.
According to New York State’s Dangerous Dog law, a judge can order the euthanizing of a dog if the dog has a known vicious propensity as evidenced by a previous unjustified attack on a person, which caused serious physical injury or death.
“We’re still trying to determine why the victim was in the rear of the residence,” said Chief Eric Hawkins. “Why the owner of those dogs kept so many dogs at that one location.”
The owner of the dogs does not live at the home where they were being kept. Hawkins says the owner is a woman from Cohoes, she is cooperating with police, but criminal charges could be a possibility.
“Certainly a possibility,” said Hawkins. “We just don’t know what they are.I mean this this was again. It was a horrific attack and obviously, when you’re keeping that many animals in a location in violation of city ordinance and some of those animals actually kill a person there is certainly a possibility for it.”
Albany Building and Codes Department is also conducting its own investigation.
“These were not dogs that were kept in what we are traditionally associated in a family atmosphere,” said Hawkins.
Chief Hawkins says no animal complaints are on record, but this wasn’t the first time this home has had a visit from police.
“Back in May we we did conduct a search warrant of that home due to drug activity reports of it, and during that during that search warrant several dogs were confiscated at that time,” said Hawkins.
At least four or five people lived at the home.
The investigation is ongoing.
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