KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Police in Independence say a man died from injuries in a dog attack Wednesday afternoon.
Around 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, police and paramedics were called to a residence in the 700 block of North Mohican Drive on reports of an attacking dog.
First responders arrived and located the man who had been attacked by a dog, per the Independence, Missouri, Police Department.
The man was transported to a nearby hospital, where he died from his injuries.
Police say responding officers decided to shoot and kill the dog due to the aggressiveness of the animal and fear for the general public's safety.
KSHB 41 reporter Elyse Schoenig spoke with the boyfriend of the man's mother, Stephen Burton. Burton says their loved one who died was a 41-year-old father who was killed by his roommate's pitbull.
We've reached out to Independence police to confirm when they'll be sharing the man's identity that was shared with KSHB by the family.
Burton also tells us this loss is hitting the hardest for his loved one's mother and young daughter.
"He loved his daughter. Okay, and we loved him, and that's about all I can tell you. He's a big part of this community. He's born and raised here, you know, comes from a well-known background," Burton said.
We also spoke to neighbors who say this is not a common occurrence in their neighborhood.
"This is horrible," neighbor Kathy Young said. "I feel for the family, pray for the family. Should have never occurred."
"From what we've seen it's very responsible animal ownership as far as animal control (in the neighborhood)," Don Young said.
Independence did repeal its pitbull ban 2.5 years ago in 2023. Stephen Burton said now is not the time to blame anyone or any animal, but a time to educate animal owners.
This is an ongoing investigation, per police.
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