Toronto dog owner sentenced to a year in jail after child was attacked. Woman barred from owning dogs for 10 years
Court heard Patrycja Siarek had previously been ordered to keep her dog muzzled in public but that she took it to a fenced-in playground that was off-limits to dogs and removed its leash and muzzle. (Michael Wilson/CBC)
A Toronto woman whose dog brutally attacked a nine-year-old boy at a playground last year has been sentenced to one year in jail and banned from owning a dog for the next decade.
Patrycja Siarek was also given three years of probation under strict conditions, including a prohibition on living with or caring for a dog, and was ordered to pay a $250 fine within two years.
After receiving credit for time already spent in custody, Siarek will serve 340 days in jail. The sentence was imposed Tuesday by an Ontario judge, who said incarceration was necessary given the seriousness of the offence and Siarek’s level of responsibility.
“This offence was, in my view, extremely grave,” Ontario Court Justice Miriam Bloomenfeld said. “The nature of the conduct and the profound and indelible harm it caused must be met with a commensurate sentence.”
Siarek pleaded guilty to criminal negligence causing bodily harm and to failing to prevent a dog from biting a person, an offence under Ontario’s Dog Owners’ Liability Act.
The court heard that three years prior to the March 2024 attack, Siarek had been issued a dangerous dog order after previous biting incidents. The order required the dog to be muzzled in public and prohibited it from being taken to off-leash areas.
Despite those restrictions, Siarek brought the dog to a fenced playground where dogs were not permitted. She removed both the leash and the muzzle so the dog could play with a ball, the judge said.
When a father and his young son entered the playground, the dog charged across the area, forced its way through the open gate, and latched onto the child’s leg. Both the father and Siarek tried unsuccessfully to pull the dog off the boy. The attack ended only after the dog shifted its grip to the child’s pants, which tore.
Siarek then fled the scene with the dog. The child was taken to hospital, where he required surgery. Because the dog’s vaccination status was unknown at the time, the child also received a tetanus shot and rabies vaccinations. The boy’s identity is protected by a publication ban.
Police later located Siarek with help from a witness. Her three dogs were seized, including the one involved in the attack. City officials previously confirmed that the attacking dog was euthanized last year, while the other two were rehomed.
“The victim suffered a devastating wound to his left rear thigh that required multiple surgeries, repeated hospital stays, and a lengthy recovery that kept him out of school and completely disrupted his life and that of his family,” Justice Bloomenfeld said.
The judge acknowledged that Siarek expressed “genuine and profound” remorse and noted that she has taken steps to address substance abuse issues and has shown insight into how her mental health struggles contributed to her actions.
Prosecutors sought a three-year jail sentence and a fine, while the defence argued for a conditional sentence to be served in the community.
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