Vigil For Carteret Toddler Killed By Pit Bulls Planned For Sunday

CARTERET, NJ — The town of Carteret is hosting a public vigil this Sunday to memorialize the 3-year-old boy who was killed by two pit bulls while playing in his backyard on March 16.

The boy's mother, who was bitten numerous times all over her body while trying to save her child, was just released from the hospital and she will be at Sunday's vigil as well, according to Barry Postrygacz, who works with the boy's father at Coney Island Auto Parts.

Carteret describes this as "a candlelight vigil that will take place on Sunday, March 28 beginning at 6:00 p.m in front of the family’s home at 49 Laurel Street in Carteret." Carteret Mayor Dan Reiman will be there, plus the victims' family and friends. The public is welcome to walk or drive by the home, and the town will be handing out glow sticks.

(The family is not currently living in the home, said Postrygacz, and they have said they will never return.)

According to Postrygacz, the vigil is not just about remembering the toddler boy who was killed. It will also be a cry for justice, as he said he expects a large show of support Sunday to put pressure on Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone to file criminal charges against the dogs' owner, who lives in the neighborhood.

"It sucks that Sunday will be so rainy, but I believe there will be a very vocal presence," said Postrygacz. "People are asking the same questions: Where are the charges? It's been over a week now and still nothing has been done."

"The mother is out of the hospital, thank God and from what I heard will need plastic surgery," he said. "There are no words to describe her status. Luckily she's surrounded by lots and lots of family."

As previously reported, the two pit bulls got loose last Tuesday afternoon, March 16. According to the town of Carteret, they escaped from their home on Birch Street and got into the backyard immediately behind them, where the woman and her three sons were outside playing on a mild spring day. The two yards meet each other and both yards appear to be fully fenced in.

Unnamed neighbors told NBC New York the dogs got out through holes in the fence. NBC also reported seeing cinder blocks covering some holes. The mother screamed at her two older boys to run inside the home, and they did. She could not get her youngest, 3, inside fast enough and threw her body on top of his to protect him, said Postrygacz. It was her oldest boy, 10, who called 911 from inside the house and Carteret police arrived and shot one of the dogs. The second was later put down as well.

The toddler died after he was airlifted to Robert Wood Johnson University Medical Center in New Brunswick.

The prosecutor has not filed criminal charges yet, and said it would not be releasing any new updates on the case as of Friday. The owner of the dogs has not been publicly identified by authorities.

"They want someone held accountable, and rightly so," said Postrygacz. "The family's main thing is they just want justice and they just want someone to be held accountable. An innocent three-year-old's life was lost. And for what? We want to leave some sort of legacy that his death wasn't in vain."

But Robert Bianchi, a lawyer who prosecuted dog attacks in his time as the Morris County prosecutor, said there may be very good reasons the Middlesex County prosecutor has not acted yet. She and her team of investigators are likely investigating the case to see if the facts can support a criminal charge.

"Everyone is upset and angry. They want to put someone in jail," said Bianchi. "But our criminal code has to show that someone was acting purposefully, knowingly or recklessly. Prosecutors love purposeful: 'I want to shoot you' and someone points a gun and fires. But this wasn't purposeful. Was it reckless? Was it reasonably foreseeable that the dogs could have escaped and would have killed a person? If it was, then the charge is aggravated assault or manslaughter (manslaughter by definition is reckless)."

Additionally, he said the Middlesex County prosecutor will have to show there was "conscious disregard for a known risk" by the dog's owner.

"Can I prove it was foreseeable based on the way this fence was that these dogs could have escaped?" he said. "Had the dogs escaped before? Have there been any complaints made? The more I can prove that the owner was aware of this condition and that it was a problem, the more I can prove there was conscious disregard for a known risk. Secondly, did the dogs ever exhibit previously violent propensities?"

"The evidence has to be strong and it really depends on the facts in the case," he said. "Prosecutors have to prove all of this beyond reasonable doubt to 12 jurors and it's not that easy."

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.

Another New Jersey lawyer who specializes in dog attacks said either way, the family should speak to a lawyer and pursue justice through the civil court system.

"This is a multi-million claim," said attorney David Cowhey. "The little boy died through pain and suffering. The mother has medical bills and also the mental distress of watching these pit bulls kill her son right in front of her. And thirdly, the little boys watching through the window went through extreme emotional distress. So have three separate claims right there."

But he cautioned that financial damages in dog attacks are often limited by the size of the homeowner's insurance policy carried by the dog's owner, provided they own a home and carry a mortgage on it.

"I represented a man in Atlantic City who literally looked like he was bitten by a shark. Two pit bulls took mouthfuls of flesh out of this guy," he said. "And the dog's owner had no insurance policy. So there was no recourse. There was nothing to be gained."

Also, some homeowner's insurance policies refuse to pay for injuries caused by a pit bull, deeming the breed too dangerous to cover.

"If the home is covered and there is no exclusion for pit bulls, the standard homeowner's insurance policy in that (Carteret) neighborhood is probably about $300,000," he estimated. "So it's probably a situation where the damages far exceed the coverage."

"What they should do is retain a good, qualified lawyer," he urged the family.

Anyone who wishes to show their support for this family is invited to their local parks at the same time on Sunday for "a simultaneous remembrance" or to drive by the Laurel Street home in their car from 6-7 p.m., said the town of Carteret. Vehicle traffic on Laurel Street will be one way during the drive by ceremony and vigil. Candlelight glow sticks will be provided by the borough of Carteret at all local parks and for those in attendance with the family on Laurel Street.

Participants are urged to wear masks and to observe all social distancing rules and regulations.

“I urge all residents to show their support by participating in Sunday’s vigil, whether it is by attending the vigil on Laurel Street, driving by the home or going to a local park to remember (the boy) and to pray for him and his family," said Carteret Mayor Dan Reiman.

So as not to inundate Laurel Street with traffic, here is where you can meet in parks in Carteret Sunday night:

• Ash St Park Located on Ash St & Arthur Ave
• Gazebo at Bishop Andrews located on Pershing Ave & Salem Ave
• Carteret Park on Carteret Ave & Cypress Street on the deck by the pond
• Noe St /Civic Center Park located on Noe St and Pershing Ave Under Gazebo
• Cornell Estates Park -Orchard Street & Pinho Ave
• Grant Ave Park - Grant Ave & Hayward Ave
• Gazebo at Shorecrest-Sycamore Street & Sumutka Ave

Postrygacz also got choked up when telling Patch how the entire state of New Jersey has reached out to this family, including signing this petition demanding criminal charges be filed and donating to this GoFundMe.

"I am right now holding a check from a random bakery in Garfield for $100 and all it says is 'this is for the family that was killed by the dogs,'" he said. "And we are getting Amazon packages full of toys for the two other boys."

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

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

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

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