Volunteer awarded $7M after German Shepherd 'latched on' to her arm for 'over ... trends now
A woman who was volunteering at an LA animal shelter was awarded nearly $7 million by a jury after a 100 lb. German Shepherd 'latched on' to her for five minutes.
Kelly Kaneko, 36, was awarded $6.8 million on Tuesday after the jury found the city liable for gross negligence inside the county-operated animal services facility.
During the 2019 attack, 'Jaxx' latched onto her arm, forcing her to drag herself to help after another employee could not hear her screams because they had headphones in.
The volunteer was asked to move Jaxx and had been told that he was 'grumpy' but not that he had previous biting incidents and was known as aggressive.
Since the massive dog would not let go, she had to drag herself to the front where another person finally saw her and her nearly ripped-off arm.
'When she arrived at the ER, her hand was officially dead,' her attorney told the Los Angeles Times, adding that she needed grafts and several procedures.
Kelly Kaneko, 36, was awarded $6.8 million on Tuesday after the jury found the city liable for gross negligence inside the county-operated animal services facility
During the 2019 attack, 'Jaxx' latched onto her arm, forcing her to drag herself to help after another employee could not hear her screams because they had headphones in
According to the LA Times who spoke with Kaneko and her attorney, the woman still has severe nerve and bone damage in her right arm.
During the October 2019 incident, the aggressive animal latched onto the woman's arm, cutting off blood flow to her hand.
'Her hand gets less blood now than it used to. It always feels cold,' attorney Ivan Puchalt said of her remaining injuries.
'And it's often a different color. She has a very faint pulse and it's a very serious injury despite the amazing work they did. She hasn't been made whole,' Puchalt said.
Kaneko said she had initially been motivated to help out at the Los Angeles Animal Shelter in Lincoln Heights after hearing the shelters are underserved.
'I love animals
