A Scipio Township dog owner is facing 17 misdemeanor citations after four of her dogs escaped a locked outdoor enclosure in July and mauled a 12-year-old girl riding an electric scooter, along with the adult cousin who rushed in to protect her. The child suffered severe facial and body lacerations serious enough to require an airlift to a children's hospital, while her cousin needed ground transport to a Jackson hospital. Both survived, but the case has become a stark example of how Michigan law treats even a brutal, multi-victim dog attack as a set of misdemeanors rather than a felony.
Hillsdale County Prosecutor Jamie Wisniewski filed the charges against 44-year-old Holley Krasnodemski on five counts of stray dog, six counts of unlicensed dog, and six county ordinance violations for failing to vaccinate her animals, according to WTVB. Krasnodemski is scheduled for arraignment on October 27 in 2B District Court, per the same outlet. As reported by WCAX, the case centers on a dog owner in Hillsdale County now confronting 17 misdemeanor citations after an attack that left a child and a woman injured.
How the Attack Unfolded on East Mosherville Road
The attack happened on July 10 on East Mosherville Road, when four pit bull-mastiff mixed dogs got loose from a locked outdoor enclosure and went after a 12-year-old girl who was riding an electric scooter, according to ClickOnDetroit. Her 31-year-old cousin, Jannell Boot, stepped in to shield her and was then mauled herself. Prosecutors said Boot's intervention saved the child's life, the outlet reported.
Emergency responders airlifted the girl to C.S. Mott Children's Hospital in Ann Arbor for pediatric trauma care after she suffered severe facial and body lacerations, the station's report notes. Boot was taken by ground ambulance to Henry Ford Hospital in Jackson. Both victims required extensive treatment, but survived the mauling.
Dogs Surrendered and Euthanized After the Mauling
Krasnodemski voluntarily surrendered the four dogs to Jackson County Animal Control on July 14, days after the attack, after prosecutors warned they would file a dangerous dog complaint in district court, per the same account. The animals were subsequently euthanized and submitted for state rabies testing, a step confirmed by CBS News Detroit.
Why Prosecutors Could Not File Felony Charges
Despite the severity of the injuries, Hillsdale County prosecutors said they were legally barred from filing felony charges under Michigan's dangerous animal statute, MCL 287.323, because Michigan State Police investigators found no documented history of prior bites or aggressive behavior by any of Krasnodemski's dogs, according to WTVB. Michigan Court of Appeals precedent, including 2013's People v. Janes and 2016's People v. Ridge, established that prosecutors must prove a dog had previously bitten or attacked someone before an owner can face felony prosecution under that statute, per the Speaker Law Firm.
That legal barrier does not close off every avenue for the victims. Michigan's strict liability dog bite statute, MCL 287.351, holds owners civilly liable for damages whenever their dog bites an unprovoking victim who is lawfully on public or private property, regardless of whether the owner knew the animal was dangerous, according to Olsman MacKenzie Peacock.
Licensing Rules Behind Most of the Citations
Twelve of the 17 citations trace back to basic licensing and vaccination requirements. Under Michigan's Dog Law of 1919 and Hillsdale County ordinances, all dogs four months of age or older must be licensed through the county treasurer and kept current on rabies vaccinations, according to the Animal Legal & Historical Center.
A Wider Pattern of Attacks by Resident Dogs
National data shows the stakes of such incidents have been climbing. Dog bite-related deaths in the United States more than doubled from 2018 to 2021, while emergency department visits for dog bites increased 15% nationwide over the same stretch, according to the CDC. Research compiled by the National Canine Research Council and cited by Arash Law found that more than 70% of fatal dog attacks between 2000 and 2015 involved dogs kept outdoors as resident animals rather than integrated into the household as family pets.
The Scipio Township case follows other recent Michigan maulings involving family-owned dogs and young victims. Hoodline previously reported on a Bruce Township mauling by family dogs earlier this month, as well as a 2024 Oakland County attack that sent a toddler and her grandmother to the hospital.
