Family Of Carteret Boy Killed By Pit Bulls: File Criminal Charges

CARTERET, NJ — The family of the 3-year-old boy mauled to death by two pit bulls last week in Carteret is demanding Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone file criminal charges against the owners of the pit bulls.

As of Wednesday, no criminal charges have been filed.

"We want them to be named; we want them to be criminally charged," said Nadia Mohammed, the sister of the woman who was critically injured trying to save her son, and the aunt of the deceased boy. "My sister will not get her son back. This was my sister's son today. Tomorrow this will be someone else's child. Look at the news. This was not the first pit bull attack."

"We do not feel this is the dogs' fault," she continued. "We think this is the fault of the owners who leave their dogs unattended. If you want to help, please share the petition. Pit bull owners need to be responsible for their dogs."

Nearly 15,000 people have signed this petition similarly urging the county prosecutor to bring charges against the dog owners.

An email by Patch to a spokeswoman for Prosecutor Cicconne was not returned. The Middlesex County prosecutor's office also has a longstanding policy of not answering whether it intends to file charges, or confirm or deny a criminal investigation.

As previously reported, the two pit bulls got loose last Tuesday afternoon, March 16, and ran into the backyard of the home behind them, where the woman and her three sons were outside playing. The mother screamed at her two older boys, ages 10 and 4, to run inside the home, and they did, where the oldest one called 911, a family friend told Patch.

But she could not get her youngest, age 3, inside fast enough. She threw her body on top of his to protect him, said the friend. It was not enough: The two dogs killed the toddler, who died after he was airlifted to University Hospital in Newark, and left the mother critically injured, bitten "on every part of her body," said the friend, who works with the boy's father.

Now today, Mohammed also said she was angry the names of her sister and deceased nephew have been published in the media, but the names of the dog owners has not.

"We've been published all over the place," she said. "They have not been named. These people do not deserve to have other dogs."

The pit bulls lived in a house on Birch Street, directly behind where the victims lived on Laurel Street. The two backyards meet and are separated by white fencing. Other media outlets reported there were holes in the fence.

The town of Carteret says it has gotten one singular complaint about those specific pit bulls in the past. That was on Oct. 23, 2020, when Carteret Police received a call that the two pit bulls were running loose, said town spokesman Jon Salonis. Police collected the dogs and the owner picked them up from police headquarters that day.

The dogs were also unregistered with the town.

The petition also accuses the town of Carteret of "negligence," which Mohammed said she did not want to elaborate on.

"We will not rest until justice is served," read the petition. "Please help us get this story heard. We need justice for the family and want to keep the town safe. Please call the prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone and urge her to prosecute the true killers of (the boy, name redacted), the owners and investigate the town of Carteret for negligence. Yolanda Ciccone Middlesex County prosecutor (732-745-3300). PLEASE Contact Governor Phil Murphy (609-292-6000) and the NJ State Attorney General's Office (609-292-4925) and tell them we want justice."

The petition: https://www.change.org/p/phil-...

Ongoing reporting: Mom In Pit Bull Attack 'Fighting For Life;' Boy Buried Thursday

Carteret In Stunned Mourning After Boy, 3, Killed By 2 Pit Bulls

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