Overview
- The 32-year-old owner, who went on trial Tuesday at the Wandsbek district court, faces a negligent bodily harm charge for leaving his dog with an untrained caretaker during a holiday.
- Prosecutors say the American-Staffordshire-Terrier mix attacked his two-year-old niece in June 2022 in Hamburg-Rahlstedt, causing severe head and facial injuries before police freed her and doctors performed emergency surgery.
- In court, the defendant said through his lawyer that the child is now doing well, according to a court spokesman.
- Officials say the same dog bit a seven-year-old in 2019, and the breed is classified as dangerous in Hamburg, which means keeping one requires official permission and oversight.
- A verdict is scheduled for April 21, and separate cases against the child’s mother and grandmother are set for June after the grandmother was also injured.