Gansevoort Woman Wins Dog Bite Lawsuit

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

January 27, 2003
Ballston, Spa, New York

Johanna Calabro, a Gansevoort, New York resident, was awarded $404,366.30 by a Saratoga County jury today after a two hour deliberation, for injuries she sustained from a dog bite she received on July 8, 1998. The defendants, Peter and Carol M. Gallagher Bennett of Saratoga, New York, were found to be liable to Ms. Calabro after their Siberian Husky dog attacked Ms. Calabro’s face without any provocation. As a result of this attack, Ms. Calabro suffered injuries to the left side of her face, nose and upper lip, causing a permanent speech impediment and nerve damage.

Ms. Calabro’s attorney, Gus P. Fotopoulos, of the Newburgh, New York law firm of Larkin Ingrassia, PLLC, believed that the Bennetts failed to accept responsibility for a dog they knew previously attacked other people and animals in the neighborhood. “We believed in our client’s case”, said Mr. Fotopoulos, “and we would not be deterred from seeing that she was awarded just compensation for the injuries she sustained.” Mr. Fotopoulos further stated that “the Bennetts not only harbored a vicious dog, but they harbored a secret as well, which was that the dog previously attacked others.” “People cannot cause injuries to others and look to avoid owning up to their responsibilities,” Fotopoulos said. This case was presented before Judge Stephen A. Ferradino. A Plastic Surgeon, Dr. Craig Roberts, and two Speech Pathologists, Cheryl Wise and Jane Capria Downey, testified concerning Ms. Calabro’s injuries.

Larkin Ingrassia, PLLC, have offices in Newburgh, New York but practice throughout various Courts in New York State.