3 months ago
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BADLY HURT: Sherry-ann Sookhoo tends to her husband, retired Highway Patrol police officer O'Neil Sookhoo, as he lays on a bed in pain after a pitbull attack at his Claxton Bay home on November 10. -Photos by Innis FrancisTHE family of a retired Claxton Bay policeman is counting its blessings after he managed to survive a mauling by a neighbour's pitbull over the weekend and won't be pressing charges.
At his Ramsawak Road, Cedar Hill Road home on the morning of November 10, O'Neil Sookhoo, 62, struggled to walk and stay upright.
"I really can't talk right now," he told Newsday as his wife, Sherry Sookhoo, 53, helped him back into bed.
His head was groggy, and his stomach was queasy from the Augmentin and Tramacet given to stave off any infection and soothe the pain from the injuries he received when he was attacked by a neighbour's light grey large breed dog, believed to be a pitbull, which escaped on the night of November 8. He received injuries to his forearms, chest, upper and lower legs.
"It's not a nice feeling to watch my husband who moving around doing stuff for us, incapacitated and can't do anything for himself because of a dog you all have and don't know how to keep the dog on a leash or something?" Sherry said.
The couple had returned home around 9.45 pm on November 8 when the attack occurred. Sherry said she left Sookhoo parking the car on the roadway and had gone inside the house when she heard screams.
"I looked out but I didn't see anything but then I heard it again. When I look again I saw him between the two vehicles there so I ran out and he told me don't come. When I watch, he had the dog on him. His hand was in the dog's mouth and he was trying to fight the dog."
Unable to stomach what was unfolding before her eyes, she said she disobeyed her husband and struck the dog with a nearby piece of wood. However, after the second strike, she said the dog let go of Sookhoo and trained its sights on her.
"He let go my husband and he was coming towards me and my husband grabbed him and he just got more vicious after that."
Retired Highway Patrol police officer O'Neil Sookhoo lays on a bed in pain after a pitbull attack at his Claxton Bay home on November 10.
She said the dog only backed off after Sookhoo hit it several times with a cutlass their son threw for him. She said the animal's owner then called out to it and it returned home.
They rushed Sookhoo to the Point Fortin Hospital, where Sherry's niece worked as a doctor.
"I have to say thanks to the staff, the security, everyone- they were really nice to us. They were really, really helpful. It was a quick service."
'Judicial system too slow'
Despite the traumatic experience, the family isn't pursuing charges. Instead, they came to an agreement with the neighbour for compensation which was expected to be formalised on November 10.
Sherry said that the motivation was not in defence of the neighbour but rather a lack of hope in the judicial system.
"Understand our justice system. How long would they take? Okay, police came, they did all what they have to do. When you go to the court, how long would they take? Our matters in this country take years upon years. Next thing I doing this for my husband, something happens and he passes on. What's going to happen? It makes no sense."
She said the family had already spent $1,000 on medication and dressings and costs were expected to grow as he required specialist medical attention for some of the injuries.
However, she said she was not focused on the compensation at the time as she was prioritising nursing her husband back to good health and dealing with the trauma the attack had left on her family.
"My children are traumatised. This is the first time seeing their father this way. They saw and they heard everything that night. I have to deal with my children. I will deal with the matter of compensation, I can't deal with it right now cause I like I say, we have to see other doctors but it will be dealt with."
She added, "We have children that run on this road. I want to ensure that this does not happen to anyone. This has to be the first and last."
The incident was reported to the Couva Police Station on November 9.
Attorney: Police can still charge owner
President of the Criminal Bar Association, Israel Khan, said the police can still charge the dog's owner despite the agreement. However, there is allowance in the law for the aggrieved parties to come to an understanding.
"The police could charge if they so desire or cause the person to put the dog away, but if the victim lives in the village and is willing to accept compensation as adequate compensation, the criminal law recognises that you ought not to bring strife...like a restorative justice between neighbours and so on.
"So it's up to the victim. But the police have so much to do, I don't know whether they would pursue that."
To her knowledge, Sherry said the dog was taken to the vet for the injuries sustained when Sookhoo struck it with the cutlass.
Though uncommon, people have lost their lives after being attacked by dogs. The last publicly available fatality was in August 2022, when Rachel Bhagwandeen, 11, was mauled to death by a relative's American Bulldog in Vistabella.
In September 2021, Amaziah Lewis, 4, was killed by a pet Rottweiler in Tacarigua.
In January 2021, Gaytri Chanderpaul was also killed by her pet Rottweiler in D'Abadie.
English (US) ·