The
facts
On June 18, 2001, Shawn
Jones, a 10-year-old boy from Richmond, CA, was brutally mauled by three
pit bulls several blocks from his home. Jones was with friends near the
Peres Elementary School playground. When the dogs attacked, his friends
attempted to get help. It was about 7:30 P.M.
The owner of the
dogs was Benjamin Moore, 28 years old. He lived near the school.
The dogs inflicted
horrifying wounds on Shawn. They pulled off several fingers, both ears
and a great deal of his face, and many muscles and nerves in both arms.
When the dogs were
through with Shawn, Moore looked at him and decided to leave him for dead!
He did not call 911. Instead, he cleaned the blood off the dogs, loaded
them into his vehicle, and dumped them at three widely separated places
around the East Bay.
Shawn was airlifted
to Children's Hospital in Oakland. He received operations on a daily basis
for about a month. For an entire month, he was in critical condition. Gradually
he improved enough to go home. See below for details about his current
condition.
For what happened
to Shawn, Moore was arrested and charged with two minor misdemeanors. He
posted $50,000 bail and was set free pending the outcome of his criminal
trial.
While out on bail,
however, Moore was arrested again. On August 15, 2001, he and his girlfriend
were found with a large supply of rock cocaine. They and another man were
prosecuted by the United States Attorney in federal court. Moore now is
serving time in federal prison on drug charges. The misdemeanors will not
be prosecuted because the statute of limitations on them will expire while
he is in prison.
Two of his dogs were
found. The third disappeared -- set loose somewhere in the Bay Area.
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The
People and other details
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Shawn Jones,
10 years old at the time of the attack. He was riding a new mountain bicycle
that was his reward for doing well in school.
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Benjamin Moore.
28 years old. He owned the dogs that mauled Shawn. Seeing the boy nearly
lifeless after the attack, Moore left him for dead, did not call 911, but
drove his dogs to different neighborhoods and let them go, one by one.
After making bail, he allegedly went to work as a drug dealer, for which
he was arrested in August 2001. He is serving time in federal prison after
pleading guilty to drug charges.
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Jacinda Lynn Knight.
33 years old. She lived with Moore and was arrested on drug charges at
the same time that he was arrested in August 2001.
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Dara Cashman.
Deputy District Attorney. She was the prosecutor in the now-dropped misdemeanor
criminal case against Moore.
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Michael Friedman.
Defense attorney in the misdemeanor criminal case against Moore.
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Johnny Gutierrez.
Police officer, Oakland Police Department. He is a narcotics officer. He
arrested Moore and Knight on charges of possession of cocaine for the purpose
of sale.
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Peres Elementary
School. Shawn Jones was attacked at or near this Richmond school.
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Shawn's
injuries
Shawn’s right and left arms, and his face and head,
were severely injured. For a month, he was in surgery every day. In one
operation, a silver-dollar-sized hole in his face was repaired from the
outside, and in another, nerves were taken from his legs and transplanted
into his right arm.
The attack left him significantly disabled.
His right arm has little feeling and is not very useful. In the first
year after the attack, it was impossible for him to button and unbutton
clothing, or tie knots; he had great difficulty making his bed, using
silverware, and writing. Eating was difficult because he had little
feeling around his mouth.
In the second year, he could not attend
school because of his inability to talk normally, write normally, or
keep a normal schedule (he had medical treatment many times each week).
He still does not have ears, but he has
plastic ones that he wears from time to time.
Shawn is in a lot of emotional pain. After
all, at a very young age he finds himself terribly disfigured and significantly
disabled. He also has to be very disciplined and structured, far more
than any other youngster of his age. It is difficult for him to bear,
and he is fortunate to have special counseling to help him through this.
Shawn's recovery
Thankfully, Shawn is continuing to improve,
although slowly. In 2003, he had four surgeries. For example, on October
8, 2003, he underwent a procedure to close an open wound on the side of
his face. He still has problems with that wound, and with others on his
face and mouth. All in all, in 2003 he spent two to three months recovering
from those operations.
Shawn finally has been able to get out
and enjoy some of the things that normal young men his age do. His favorite
pastimes include basketball, seeing movies, and attending live football
games.
The family is very grateful for everything
that the public has been doing for Shawn since his accident in June 2001.
The generous donations to Shawn’s trust fund will help provide for him
in the future. Disfigured people have to cope with a lot of discrimination,
which not only is emotionally painful but also affects their ability to
earn a living. They do not get the great jobs, make the big sales, get
promoted as often, or even work as many years. The donations will be used
to supplement other public programs like MediCal. Hopefully the trust fund
will help Shawn to live a nearly normal life.
It is hoped that everyone realizes that
Shawn continues to require medical attention and constant care, and that
donations will be very important to his future welfare.
A team of dedicated professionals makes
decisions about Shawn’s trust monies and legal issues. Team members
include Belinda Arnett (his aunt and legal guardian), Catholic Charities
of Oakland (case workers), and Kenneth Phillips (attorney).
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