A 73-year-old woman who was fatally attacked by her dog inside her home in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood on Monday afternoon is being remembered as a very generous and very loving person who loved animals.
Police announced Tuesday morning that Jeriline Brady-McGinnis, of Roxbury, had died at a local hospital from injuries she sustained in the attack that was reported about 4:30 p.m. Monday on Dennison Street. Investigators believe the initial attack occurred inside the home, while the second attack on officers took place outside.
The dog -- a pit bull mix -- also seriously injured her husband, and bit two officers who responded to the scene, prompting one of them to shoot the canine. The man is expected to survive, and the officers' injuries are considered minor, police said.
Boston Animal Control officers removed the “severely injured” dog named “Deuce” from the home, a spokesperson for the agency said Tuesday, according to the Boston Globe. The wounded dog was taken to Angell Animal Medical Center for treatment but later euthanized with the agreement of the owner's son due to its worsening condition and poor prognosis to prevent further suffering, said Liz Sullivan, of the Boston Parks and Recreation Department.
Three other dogs, also pit bull mixes, were removed from the home, as well, animal control said, and their overall condition is adequate. They are being cared for under the supervision of the city's veterinary medical director.
The Globe reports that the two-family home where Brady-McGinnis was attacked is owned by local civil rights trailblazer Jean McGuire, who lives above the victims' apartment.
McGuire, 93, told the Globe she has been renting to Brady-McGinnis and her husband, Leon, for decades. The couple lived in a downstairs apartment with one of their three sons.
"She’s a wonderful person,” McGuire said of Brady-McGinnis. “She was generous and kind, always thinking of other people...We all miss Jeri. You don’t want anything horrible to happen to anybody, anywhere. She was a wonderful mother and a fine person, very respected.”
McGuire told the Globe that Leon McGinnis remains hospitalized. She also said she's never had any problem with their animals.
“I don’t know what happened, and until I find out from Leon, I won’t know,” McGuire said.
“They had a pit bull family,” she continued, adding that the McGinnis’s would breed the dogs and sell the puppies.
McGuire also told the Globe that the couple had too many dogs.
"And they put them in cages, and I told them, 'Don't put them a dog in a cage,' you know, keep them from fighting or whatever," said McGuire, who was not home during the attack but wasn't completely surprised when she learned what happened. "You have to be careful with anything alive, about your relationship, in terms of trust and a pecking order."
According to the Globe, no charges have been filed in connection with the case.
While fatal dog attacks are uncommon, their numbers have increased in recent years, the most recent national data shows. The Globe, citing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says the number of people who died after being bitten or struck by a dog increased from 31 in 2016 to 81 in 2021.
