A Quebec woman mauled in a dog attack wins a $460,000 civil case against a small town and its owner

Five years after Dominique Alain was attacked by dogs in Potton, Que., the city and the dog’s owner must pay her nearly $460,000 in damages.

On March 28, 2019, Alain, an active 55-year-old who enjoys tennis and mountain biking, was jogging in Quebec’s Eastern Townships community when three of Alan Barnes’ dogs mauled her.

Alain was critically injured in the attack.

She had to be resuscitated in hospital – 13 operations, 12 months of rehabilitation and 22 months of psychological treatment.

“She suffered a tremendous ordeal, but she did her best to move forward,” said Jonathan Gottlieb, Alain’s attorney.

“The injuries were catastrophic. This is a person who was attacked so severely that his life was in danger.”

In 2021, she sued both Barnes and the city. Barnes had offered no defense in the civil case and had previously admitted responsibility.

In the decision announced Wednesday, Quebec Superior Court Judge Sylvain Provencher said Barnes was clearly responsible for the damage his dogs caused that day.

Dominique Alain’s legs and arms still bear the scars left by her canine attackers, leaving her wounded for life. (Denis Gervais/Radio-Canada)

Provencher wrote that Alain was “not the same woman anymore.”

“She had to redefine herself, live differently, even give up some of her passions and live them at a different pace for others,” the ruling says.

The decision requires Barnes and the city of Potton to pay Alain damages and future loss of income due to his inability to work. They must also pay Leo Joy, Alain’s husband, $75,000 for the time he spends supporting his wife.

Dogs had attacked other residents

The couple is satisfied with this result, says Gottlieb.

“It was certainly a difficult process for them,” he said. “She had to relive the experience.”

He says the city was blamed because it knew of previous incidents involving Barnes’ dogs.

“Staying inactive as a community is not acceptable behavior,” Gottlieb said.

While the outcome of this case doesn’t necessarily set a precedent for holding municipalities accountable for every dog ​​attack, Gottlieb says it shows that cities must act when they become aware of a dangerous situation.

In his decision, Provencher listed several instances in which incidents involving Barnes’ dogs were brought to the attention of city staff.

The municipality passed an animal protection ordinance in 2005 that says people must report within 24 hours if a dog has bitten someone.

Court witnesses said that Marie-Claude Lamy, the city employee responsible for overseeing animal husbandry, was informed at least once directly by a colleague about the dogs’ aggressive and potentially dangerous behavior.

This is one of three dogs seized by the SPCA after Alain was attacked. (Marie-Hélène Rousseau/Radio-Canada)

And the court heard that Jason Ball, who became a councilor, was cycling near Barnes’ home in 2017 when the dogs chased him.

He had to get off his bike and use it as a shield until Barnes intervened and apologized.

Ball testified that although the bite broke the skin, he didn’t think to report it because Barnes told him the dogs had never done anything like that before.

A total of three incidents were reported to the city.

That same summer, Barnes’ dogs brutally attacked another man, Yannick Savard.

The dogs bit his hands, wrists, right forearm, right ankle, both thighs, left hip and buttocks – causing permanent physical and psychological damage, including loss of grip strength in his hands.

Provencher said the incidents show Potton does not take seriously his responsibilities for animal control, “including the safety of citizens and people” on his territory.

“Without Potton’s negligence and failure to take appropriate measures to contain the threat, it is very likely that the brutal attack by Barnes’ dogs that Alain survived – and the damage she and Joy suffered – would not have occurred.” Provencher wrote.

In 2021, Barnes pleaded guilty to a charge of negligent assault and was sentenced to six months in prison. He is forbidden to keep dogs for the rest of his life.