A mother, her boyfriend, and an uncle are all facing child endangerment charges after handcuffing a six-year-old who was then mauled by a pit bull.
The incident happened Saturday, August 17, at a home in Northeast Ohio, where deputies received a call about the boy after he had been bitten by the pit bull.
In court, Angelina Williams, the boy’s mother, argued that she did not know it was illegal to handcuff a child, after she and the other defendants allegedly did so as punishment after he failed to clean up after the dog.
He was bitten on the neck, ear, and flown to a hospital, but is expected to recover, his grandmother said.
Robert Michalski Jr., the boy’s uncle, was identified as the owner of the dog and the residence where the attack took place, where Williams’s boyfriend, Taylor Desiree Marvin Brown, was also present for a family visit.
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Angelina Williams, the boy’s mother, said that she did not know it was illegal to handcuff a child
Taylor Desiree Marvin Brown (left), Williams’ boyfriend, and Robert Michalski Jr. (right), the boy’s uncle, were also charged, with the latter owning the house where the incident took place, as well as the dog
‘The dog is not even my dog. The cuffs are not even my cuffs,’ Williams argued in court in Ashland County on Wednesday, insisting that she did not know it was illegal to handcuff a child.
‘I didn’t even know the cuffs were illegal or anything was wrong with it.
‘My uncle told me it was OK.’
Ashland County Prosecutor Chris Tunnell, meanwhile, painted a picture that sought to provide a backdrop for the disturbing chain of events, which culminated with the boy being attacked shortly after he was handcuffed.
‘This defendant and the co-defendants handcuffed him, both hands, and then applied a second set of cuffs to his feet,’ Tunnell told the judge during the trio’s initial hearing.
‘They were in the process of using a rope to try and tie him to a chair when he came off the chair and then, while on the ground, was attacked by a pit bull.’
He added how Williams and two other co-defendants handcuffed the child at the home that Saturday simply because he did not clean up after the dog.
Williams maintained she did not know she did anything wrong.
‘I never meant any harm,’ she said. ‘I really didn’t.’
The six-year-old victim, seen here with a different dog, was bitten on the neck, ear, and flown to a hospital, but is expected to recover
‘The dog is not even my dog. The cuffs are not even my cuffs,’ Williams argued in court in Ashland County on Wednesday, insisting that she did not know what she was doing was wrong
The prosecutor added how Williams’s daughter was also present, but was not involved in the attack.
Williams does not have custody of either child but had them both at the time for a scheduled visit, and their father was not identified.
The boy’s grandmother, asking not to be named, told WSAZ-3 how her grandson is expected to recover, despite the horrifying nature of the incident.
‘I come in, and I look at my grandson who is sitting on the floor and – not to cuss – I’m like, “Why the f**k does he have handcuffs on?” she said, recalling how she told the three defendants, ‘Get them off of him, now.’
She also described how she jumped in to help him, showing the bite marks left on her hands in the process. Still, compared to her grandson, she said she ‘got lucky’.
‘It was just a reaction, when the dog did it. I automatically just reached down. I saw where the dog was going, like it went in slow motion,’ she said.
Following the attack, the boy’s mom, her boyfriend, and the owner of the dog were all arrested – however, according to The Ashland County Sheriff, Michalski and the dog left before deputies arrived.
Detectives added that the child had been restrained with two sets of handcuffs, on both his hands and feet, when the dog attacked.
The incident happened Saturday, August 17, at this home in Northeast Ohio, on Chapel Street in Ashland County
The boy’s grandmother was also there and allegedly jumped to his rescue, and received bites in the process
The residence belongs to the boy’s uncle, who was found shortly after deputies descended on the scene hiding in a cubbyhole with the dog, who was taken into custody as well
Deputies said the dog and its owner were found shortly after deputies descended on the scene, hiding in a cubbyhole.
Williams is charged with endangering children, while Michalski is charged with endangering children and tampering with evidence.
Brown, meanwhile, is charged with endangering children and obstruction of justice, and had his bond set at $250,000, Michalski’s bond was set at $150,000, while Willams’ was set at $300,000.
The boy’s grandmother on Monday said that she’s just grateful he is recovering, more than a week after his ordeal.
‘He’s a sweetheart. He really is,’ she said, as the pit bull was taken into custody to be housed as a vicious dog.
The investigation into the incident remains ongoing, and is currently with the Ashland County Prosecutor’s Office.
