The owner of an American bulldog which mauled a four-year-old girl and left her scarred for life has avoided prison.
Luna-Ann Forsyth, from Nuneaton, Warwickshire, was pulled to the ground and bitten on the face by the mastiff at a family friend’s home in the town on August 6, 2023.
She had been visiting the animal’s owner, Emma Callaghan, with her mother, Amy Hobson, 35, and younger brother when the shocking attack occurred.
The large dog, called Junior, escaped a room he was locked in and ‘jumped’ on the little girl, leaving her ‘screaming’ and ‘covered in blood’, a court heard.
The toddler, now seven, was rushed to hospital and has since undergone two cheek surgeries and still faces another – but has still been left ‘severely disfigured’.
Her mother told jurors Luna-Ann was so ‘traumatised’ that the family had to move out of the town – and her daughter still has constant nightmares even three years on.
Callaghan, of Tryan Road, was found guilty of being the owner in charge of dog dangerously out of control causing injury following a trial at Warwick Crown Court.
But she dodged jail when she appeared before the judge for sentencing on Thursday, which saw her handed a three-month prison sentence, suspended for 18 months.
Luna-Ann Forsyth (pictured, with her injury), from Nuneaton, Warwickshire, was pulled to the ground and bitten on the face by the mastiff at a family friend’s home in the town on August 6, 2023
The large dog (pictured), called Junior, escaped a room he was locked in and ‘jumped’ on the little girl, leaving her ‘screaming’ and ‘covered in blood’, a court heard
The owner was also ordered to carry out 25 days of rehabilitation and 250 hours of unpaid community work.
A court hearing will be held next week to consider applications for a destruction order for the animal and decide whether Callaghan can continue to own dogs.
She spent 13 days in prison prior to sentencing after failing to show at a previous court date.
Luna-Ann had been shopping in Nuneaton town centre with her mother and brother before visiting Callaghan’s home in the Stockingford neighbourhood.
His Honour Judge Matthew Walsh KC told the pet owner in court: ‘On August 6, 2023 your dog Junior changed a four-year-old girl’s life.
‘Junior launched an unprovoked, sudden, terrifying and vicious attack on Luna-Ann and he effectively mauled her.
‘He jumped up and he grabbed her face with his mouth and she screamed and he pulled her to the ground and stood over her and she was screaming again.
‘Miss Hobson (her mother) starting kicking the dog to get it off her. She was screaming for Emma to come and get it off.
‘She kicked him again and he let go. In other words released his jaws. Emma got him out of the room.
‘Luna-Ann’s face was covered in blood with a big gash on her cheek and Miss Hobson said that she could see into her mouth and there were puncture wounds and she was given bed sheets to try to stem the blood.’
The little girl was rushed to the nearby George Eliot Hospital and then taken to the University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire via ambulance.
Judge Walsh called her injuries as ‘horrific’, adding: ‘It has changed Luna-Ann, she has been traumatised, she struggles to sleep.
‘She felt unsafe living where she was at the time and had to cross the road to avoid being near the location, it petrified her. They have had to move away from Nuneaton.
‘Luna-Ann is still scared of dogs and she is worried about the differences that will be perceived in her appearance by other children as she starts her way through primary school.’
Her mother, Miss Hobson, read a statement in court saying ‘this vicious and brutal dog attack’ has left her daughter ‘traumatised’ and ‘severely disfigured’.
‘Things took a sickening a life-changing turn, this was the moment that changed Luna’s life forever,’ she said.
Her mother, Amy Hobson (pictured, with her daughter), 35, told jurors Luna-Ann was so ‘traumatised’ that the family had to move out of the town – and the girl still has constant nightmares even three years on
‘She no longer sleeps at night and continues to struggle with sleep due to nightmares and waking up screaming, “Get him off me”, “Stop”, and just that heart-wrenching scream when it first happened.
‘Luna used to be a very confident little girl, some would say more confident of most her age. Now she is a shadow of who she used to be.’
The mother-of-five said her daughter was worried about starting school.
‘She is adamant that she will be bullied for the way her face looks now even though she is, and I always tell her, how beautiful she is,’ she explained.
‘When Luna started school and still now, she has children looking at her and asking her questions about her face which upsets her a lot as it is a constant reminder about what happened on that dreadful day.’
Miss Hobson, who has backed national campaigns against dangerous dogs, said the whole family will ‘never forget’ what happened.
She has herself been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in the wake of the ordeal.
‘This ordeal has impacted my mental health,’ she said.
‘Watching my daughter be mauled by a dog but also the thought that she wasn’t going to survive – I wished it was me.
‘I also think of the “what ifs” and “what nots” – it is just overwhelming.’
And with Luna-Ann still in and out of hospital for appointments, the family remain stressed by the costs and extensive travel needed to access this ongoing care.
Miss Hobson also said her daughter’s behaviour has deteriorated since the attack, amid her continued trauma, lack of sleep and fear.
‘She asks all the time, “Why did he bite?”, “Why did he get me?”,’ the mother explained.
‘I am also worried how this will continue impact Luna when she is older.
‘We all know how society is and she will want and need further cosmetics to help her deal with the permanent scarring to her face.’
But despite all this, the family have still not received an apology over the attack.
The court was told Callaghan has mental health difficulties, including bipolar disorder.
Judge Walsh explained there were guidelines he had to take into consideration in his judgement because of this.
‘This was a serious injury to Luna-Ann and has caused psychological harm to [Luna-Ann] as well,’ the judge told the dog owner.
‘Where it has been disputed is the questions to your culpability and I have concluded that it falls into lesser culpability.
‘I was considering the evidence that you had locked Junior in a room knowing that he had a tendency to be able to release the door mechanism.
‘But there is no evidence about Junior’s previous tendencies to be aggressive or attack anyone.
‘It seems to me to be an unsafe conclusion for me to reach that you put him in that room because of such a risk known only to you and your partner.
‘It seems to be it would involve speculating, it may have been that you put him in that room out of the way because you had guests and he is a big dog.’
‘The report hints at remorse but there is a degree of victim blaming but I am not minded to reflect, as a mitigating feature, any genuine remorse on your part.
‘There have been no previous complaints or incidents involving Junior.’
