DELAND, Fla. – After an 8-year-old boy was killed by dogs in a DeLand neighborhood earlier this year, his family is now taking the local homeowners’ association to court.
The incident happened in January when 8-year-old Michael Millett III was outside riding his bicycle around the Berry’s Ridge subdivision with his friend, according to Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood.
It was around this time that two “large and dangerous dogs” from outside the neighborhood got in through the subdivision’s front gate, which had broken and been left wide open, the lawsuit claims.
“The two dogs fatally attacked Michael Millett III, causing him to suffer multiple face and neck wounds, significant abrasions, bites and claw bruising to his chest, a leg fracture, puncture wounds to both legs, and substantial blood loss,” the lawsuit reads.
[BELOW: 8-year-old killed in Volusia County dog attack]
The lawsuit also states that Millett’s mother tried to fight off the dogs, though the boy ultimately died from his wounds.
After the attack, Volusia County officials announced that the dogs had been euthanized, and their owners were later taken into custody.
However, Millett’s family now claims that the HOA had known there was an issue with “loose and dangerous dogs” coming into the community, including complaints about “aggressive Rottweilers harassing the neighborhood.”
[BELOW: New charges for both owners of dogs that mauled boy to death in DeLand]
“Despite this knowledge of the history of dangerous dogs entering the community, the Association and Specialty Management did not address or maintain the broken gate, and chose not to repair the gate or take any other actions to make the community secure,” the lawsuit continues.
As a result, Millett’s family is accusing the Berry’s Ridge HOA of wrongful death due to negligence, seeking over $50,000 in damages.
The full lawsuit has been attached to this story and can be read below.