CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Prominent South Texas attorney Thomas J. Henry believes the lawsuit his firm filed June 30 against an Aransas County man and woman will teach irresponsible dog owners that aggressive dogs need to be secured and dealt with properly as well.
He also hopes local governments will get the message. If not -- he's prepared to go to court.
"When you have a lawsuit that starts against a party, sometimes it can be expanded,” he said. “Depending upon what you learn in the lawsuit."
Henry is representing Edward and Beatrice Flores, whose son Lewis Flores was fatally mauled by three loose adult dogs and two puppies just outside of Rockport.
While the suit claims Lewis Flores was walking down San Antonio Street, Aransas County Sheriff’s Office deputies said he was found on Monkey Road.
The Floreses have filed a civil lawsuit against Mario Alberto Mendoza Pena and Guadalupe Carreon, whose dogs reportedly killed the 40-year-old man on June 20.
"I think the big issues become: Are there prior problems with these animals? Who took those calls? Who fielded those calls?" Henry said.
Henry said the role of the county, and how its animal control responded before, during, and after the attack, will be looked at closely.
"If you have government officials coming out, or police, individuals, responsible for animal control, coming out and constantly not taking care of the problem, those are things we want to learn this lesson," he said.
Along with the civil suit, Mendoza Pena and Carreon also are facing criminal charges -- attack by dog resulting in death.
3NEWS tried to get comment from Aransas County Judge Ray Garza about whether animal control responded appropriately during the attack.
As of 6 p.m. Tuesday he had not reached back.
Digital director Ana Tamez contributed to this story.