$5000 fine for dog attack on 65yo

City of Greater Geraldton rangers are looking for a dog (not that pictured) which is to be destroyed by court order after attacking and seriously injuring a 65-year-old woman.

A court order is part of the penalty imposed on Tamara Joseph, 55, who was fined $5000 for having control of a dog which attacked a person and caused injury.

The fine was half the maximum $10,000 allowed under the Dog Act for the offence.

Joseph was fined a further $1000 for permitting a dog to be in a public place without a leash and ordered to pay court costs totalling $688.

Joseph pleaded guilty in Geraldton Magistrate’s Court to both offences, which occurred on February 23.

The court was told the victim was trying to help Joseph’s grandson catch the four-year-old Shar Pei, a medium-sized dog called Lilo, which was running down Mabel Street, Beresford.

The dog charged the victim and bit her on the arm, causing serious injuries which needed surgery in hospital and left a permanent scar.

Joseph’s lawyer said the dog was being protective of the grandson when the victim approached them.

The City of Greater Geraldton’s prosecutor told the court Joseph claimed to have not seen the dog since the incident, but a witness had seen her throw it into a taxi which drove away five minutes after the attack.

The dog has since been at large, with Joseph saying she did not know its whereabouts.

The prosecutor said the dog was known to rangers because it had been involved in a similar incident on January 5 in which a 65-year-old man was attacked.

In court, Joseph told Magistrate Donna Webb she had gone to the aid of the man after that incident.

Ms Webb said this aggravated the February offences because Joseph knew her dog was dangerous and should have taken better steps to prevent other such incidents.