Lauren Lawler fumed her dogs ‘would still be alive now’ if victim John McColl – who was killed in a horror mauling – ‘didn’t take it upon himself’ to enter her garden
The girlfriend of an XL Bully breeder says her life has been “ruined” after her dogs were shot when one of them mauled and killed a pensioner who accidentally wandered into her garden.
Lauren Lawler said “(her) dogs would still be alive now” if victim John McColl “didn’t take it upon himself to go into (her) garden”. Her partner, Sean Garner, 31, was found guilty of owning a dangerously out of control dog, causing death, at Liverpool Crown Court last week.
The horror attack unfolded on Bardsley Avenue in Warrington on February 24 last year when Mr McColl mistakenly entered Garner’s driveway while walking home from the pub.
One of the dogs, called Toretto, launched at the 84-year-old as neighbours who heard McColl’s screams tried using a brush, golf club and spirit level to fight off the banned breed.
Armed police were called to the scene, and one officer shot the XL Bully nine times with a pistol while another blasted the dog with a shotgun. Officers also shot dead a second XL Bully, a female called Malibu, which was found on the property so as to “not to take any chances,” reports the Liverpool Echo.
After Garner was found guilty, his girlfriend Lauren Lawler wrote a series of posts on Facebook calling police and government “the biggest load of vile corrupt people I’ve ever come across.”
In a post containing pictures of both Malibu and Toretto, she wrote: “Does Malibu or Toretto look slightly under fed or neglected in any sort of way! That picture of them together is one month before they was both shot dead!
“This is how Cheshire Police think they can treat an innocent dog that had nothing to do with attacking the man outside, they said all our doors were secure so knew they didn’t need to enter and went inside and shot Malibu about nine times for absolutely nothing!
“She had no involvement whatsoever, they are an absolute disgrace and people have the cheek to moan about a few dog poos on a patio but think that this is OK for police to do to a innocent dog!,” she added.
“Both our dogs were our family pets and have been brought up with kids all their lives, we had only lived in this house for three weeks and the dogs had been with us for about 10 days. […] That poor man didn’t deserve to die but my dogs were never ever once mistreated or under fed! And my dogs would still be alive now if he didn’t take it upon himself to go into my garden and shed!
“Malibu was shot in the face and neck right where her collar was, her collar was left on the floor and could see where the bullet had gone through it and she had teeth on the floor!”
Lauren, who was herself arrested following the attack after “cowardly” Garner allowed her to go to the scene in his place, posted showing broken glass on the floor of the house and bloodstains in the kitchen where Malibu was said to have been shot.
Challenging her Facebook rant, one person said: “It’s f***ing disgusting that you’re on here blaming that poor man…it was clearly only a matter of time till your dog did something like this…I wonder if you would be on here blaming the victim of it were your child.
“That dog wasn’t even registered, you had him illegally…if your dogs were treated so well then that’s proof that it’s not the owner, it’s the breed.” Lawler shot back: “My life and kid’s lives have been ruined thanks to his actions that day, and the dog had never ever once shown aggression towards anyone or I wouldn’t have had him, we had him from four months old.”
But another woman said: “If you want someone to blame, blame yourselves for not getting the dogs registered or neutered. There was clearly a reason you lied to your new landlord about the dogs. Have some respect for a man who’s died, someone has lost their dad, grandad because you cba following the law.”
In court, a jury heard Toretto had gone without food for up to 10 hours before the attack and had gone weeks without being walked. Garner claimed he had locked the unregistered XL Bully – who had its ears illegally cropped in an act of “mutilation” – in a shed before leaving home that day.
Neighbour Victor Ferrier, who tried fighting off Toretto with a brush, said: “I could see the dog was chewing on his face. The man was howling and screaming.”
PC Chris Cunliffe, one of the first officers to arrive at the scene, said: “I can only describe the dog’s behaviour as if guarding its toy that it had just ripped apart. The sound of Mr McColl’s screams was horrific. I don’t believe he even knew we were there. He couldn’t see or hear us.
“These were the worst injuries I’ve ever seen in my policing career. I’ve been in policing eight years and have never seen or heard of an incident so horrifying, and I don’t think I ever will.”
Dog breeder Garner, who ran an Instagram page called “Little and Large Bullies”, maintained Toretto’s behaviour was “brilliant” and said McColl must have deliberately let the dog out of the shed – a suggestion described as “ludicrous” by the prosecution.
Garner, of Belle Vale, was remanded in custody and is due to return to Liverpool Crown Court for sentencing on April 17.
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