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Officer Hospitalized After Pit Bull Attack, Dog Killed

McKEESPORT (KDKA) – A local police officer is in the hospital after being attacked by a pit bull.

And the owner says she's not mad that police killed her dog.

McKeesport Police were initially called to a house at 1802 Freemont Street to handle a custody dispute on Saturday.

And they did, but before they could leave the scene, officer Frank Durante – who's been on the force since 2005 – was attacked by a pit bull.

"He was trained to be very protective, we got him as a guard dog," said the owner of the pit bull Danielle Holloway.

Holloway, whose dog's name is Goochie, said her ex-husband actually let him outside. And when the dog saw the officers responding to the call, he did what he was trained to do: protect.

"My dog jumped and latched onto the officers arm," Holloway said. "And the officer outside of the gate began to shoot at my dog and my children were so close. My mother had to take them home and showered them they were covered in blood."

The officer was bitten on the left thigh and left forearm and remains hospitalized. The dog died on the way to the kennel.

"I think they followed the procedure," Holloway said. "When an officer was getting hurt, he was getting bit, but he was safely outside the fence, so I don't believe that they had to shoot as many times as they did."

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