'Stop the biting': LASD K-9 unit under fire after vicious attack leads to lawsuit

A woman from South Los Angeles wants to see changes in how the L.A. County Sheriff's Department uses police dogs after she was attacked by one.

Attorney Don Cook tells KNX News' Karen Adams that his client Rosa Ramirez was viciously attacked by a sheriff's department canine that was off its leash, searching for a suspect near her home.

"A deputy knocks on her front door; she opens it and starts talking to him. Meanwhile, the dog handler has got this dog off-leash," Cook said. "The dog charges forward, attacks her on her left hand, which is her dominant hand, and rips it open, causing a major injury. She's had to have several surgeries."

Cook says they want the L.A. County Sheriff's Department to rethink how it uses dogs.

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"If you want to use the dog to find anything, including little lost babies, and it can work, by all means, use the dog - just don't let it bite," said Cook. "Their own trainer has told them they can use the dog to find people and not to have a bite; just put a muzzle on the dog. The dog searches just as effectively. What's unnecessary and what we want them to stop is, stop the biting."

The lawsuit also seeks compensatory damages.

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