After fatal attack

Dog owner adds: “I overestimated myself”

The dog owner was sentenced to 15 months in prison, five of which were unconditional.

(Bild: Dostal Harald, Krone KREATIV)

The fatal dog attack on a jogger (60) in Naarn shocked the whole country last October. Now the owner of the three American Staffordshire terriers is speaking out again: "I would have given my life for this woman to survive," writes the 38-year-old from Mühlviertel in a statement.

Her first post would have left too much room for interpretation and speculation, which is why she wants to clarify a few things, says the 38-year-old whose dogs bit a jogger to death in Naarn last October. As reported, the woman from Mühlviertel recently posted a Facebook entry for the first time after the terrible incident. The owner of dog "Elmo" has now followed up: she does not want to portray herself as a victim.

"I am more than aware of my guilt"
Right at the beginning of her long statement, the dog owner, who was convicted of gross negligence manslaughter, expresses her condolences to the bereaved. "It is inconceivable what suffering was left behind here (...). Because I overestimated myself," writes the 38-year-old. She was aware that she had to manage her dogs in such a way that no one else was harmed. That is why she pleaded guilty in court. Elsewhere, the dog owner writes: "I am more than aware of this guilt."

In her second statement, the Mühlviertel woman describes the course of the accident itself somewhat differently. While she initially wrote that she had fallen and fallen unconscious, she now claims to have thrown herself protectively over the victim. And: While she initially cited the dogs' hormonal balance after a litter as the reason for the attack, the Mühlviertler now rows back - she herself is looking for explanations for the actual trigger.

Dog keeping law to be tightened
She does not expect the media, which the 38-year-old accuses of "hounding", to show pity, but rather "true and correct reporting."

The Mühlviertel native is aware that she is the trigger for the tightening of the Dog Ownership Act and that "many responsible dog owners have to suffer as a result", the 38-year-old continued. As reported, the Upper Austrian state parliament wants to pass stricter rules for certain breeds and large dogs before the summer.

The convicted dog owner concludes her Facebook entry with an apology to the relatives of the jogger who was killed.