1-year-old girl mauled to death at family friend’s July 4 party, Illinois police say
A Fourth of July party came to a tragic end early Sunday after a dog attacked a 1-year-old girl in Illinois, police say.
The 17-month-old and her parents were at a friend’s Joliet home for a Fourth of July party, WLS reported. Two dogs, believed to be pit bull mixes, were locked in the basement, police said.
The parents put the girl in a playpen upstairs, according to the outlet.
Somehow, the dogs got out of the basement, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. The homeowner heard a noise and went upstairs to find one of the dogs biting the girl, according to the newspaper.
Police said the homeowner was able to separate the dog from the girl and call 911, the Sun-Times reported. The girl had suffered “bite marks throughout her body,” police said.
Police arrived just before 1:30 a.m. and the girl was taken to an area hospital where she later died, according to WMAQ.
The dog has since been turned over to Joliet Township Animal Control, the outlet reported.
Preliminary autopsy results from the coroner’s office show the girl died from the dog attack, according to the Sun-Times.
The incident is under investigation, WLS reported.
