I grabbed dog's neck, girl's father tells jury
The father of a little girl who was attacked by a dog has told a court how he had to 'throw' himself at the animal and grab it by the throat.
A husband and wife from Rushall are accused of being in charge of their 36-year-old son's Japanese Akita 'Diesel' when it escaped from their garden in Lichfield Road and bit a young girl's head.
Jasvinder Gill, aged 61, and Nirmal Singh, aged 60, each deny the charge.
The father of the girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, told a jury at Wolverhampton Crown Court how he had taken his daughter to Star City cinema just before the attack on May 5 last year.
"I got half way across the road when I saw the dog heading directly towards my daughter," he said.
"It leapt up, grabbed her and bit her on the head and knocked her down onto the floor.
"I threw myself at it and grabbed it around the neck. The dog was immediately biting my hands and arms because I had it around the throat."
Other people then began to gather before a man who works as a dog trainer put a slip lead around the animal's neck and put it behind the gates with the help of Mr Singh.
At the time of the attack Mrs Gill was inside her home, having been asked by her daughter-in-law to look after her two grandchildren. When she heard the commotion, Mrs Gill woke her husband Mr Singh.
She said: "I was worried someone was killing the dog because I could see a man lashing out."
Both Mrs Gill and her husband say they have never taken care of the dog and have no responsibility for the animal, as it belongs to their son Amrit Pal. The couple live with their two sons, a daughter, a daughter-in-law and two grandchildren.
"It's always behind the gates," added Mrs Gill. "My son had left for work."
The prosecuting solicitor and the two def-ence solicitors gave their closing speeches before the case was adjourned until today, when the jury was expected to retire.
