The case of a serious injury to a little boy on Petřín will be assessed by the Municipal Court in Prague – ČT24 – Czech Television
“The defendant filed an appeal against the decision through his lawyer,” Strcula said.
In February, the District Court for Prague 1 ruled illegally on a ten-month prison sentence for Jaroslav Pasteliak for grievous bodily harm. It also includes a five-year ban on keeping or breeding animals. In this way, the court fully complied with the public prosecutor’s proposal. The man should also pay the injured boy 508 thousand crowns, another 317 thousand crowns should be paid by the health insurance company. However, the verdict is invalid, Pastelik has appealed and the case will be dealt with by the Municipal Court in Prague.
Last April, Pasteliak walked the dog Thor, who is known by his acquaintances, at the upper station of the Petrin cable car in Prague. The mother of the attacked boy testified in court that her four-year-old son ignored the animal and played with leaves on the ground. But the crossbreed of the Pit Bull Terrier and the American Bull bite bit the child’s side. He bit his head, partially scalped him.
According to witnesses, Pastelik did nothing for the first minute or two to pull the dog away from the child. Eventually, the 58-year-old man ran away with the dog. Police did not report until the camera footage of the incident was released.
The defendant’s claim that the dog had time on a leash and just before the attack broke away from him because the carbine broke is, according to the judge, completely unbelievable. She pointed out footage from the camera, according to which Pastelik was fleeing next to the dog on a leash.
The dog’s trainer called the attack a short circuit
The trainer Thor also testified in court, stating that the animal was not and is not aggressive and that it responds without orders. He called the attack a short circuit. Pasteliak interrupted the training of the young dog during the coronavirus pandemic. The trainer also mentioned that the man had asked him the afternoon after the incident if he could look after Thor for a few days. She did not tell him about the attack, although he knew the trainer also had a small child at home.
The judge sharply criticized both the accessible and the way his lawyer defended her. “I am completely dismayed by the language the lawyer gave here for her client. I expected the defendant to show at least a little self-reflection, regret. I was expecting everything possible, but this was really something, “said Judge Pavla Hájková at the February hearing.
Physical and psychological consequences for life
So far, the only form of apology, according to the judge, was a letter in Czech sent to the boy’s mother, whom Pastelik knew I did not understand Czech. She also reminded that the boy will bear the physical and mental consequences for life and that he is now afraid to go anywhere where he could meet a dog. The judge further stated that the child was in direct danger of life and that he was saved by urgent surgery. According to his mother, he had 16 scars left.
The prosecutor originally demanded a condition for men. However, due to his approach to the whole matter, he changed the proposal to unconditional imprisonment.