South Bay : Dog That Mauled Resident Is Banished From Community

Captain Sinbad has been banished from El Segundo because the Alaskan malamute is too vicious for the urban residential area.

Legally, the El Segundo City Council could have sentenced the dog, who mauled a resident, to death but members instead voted Tuesday that the dog could remain alive so long as it was neutered and sent to an animal psychiatrist for evaluation, retraining and relocation. The 95-pound dog mauled a resident Jan. 19 after it escaped from its owner’s home.

John McCarty, 62, discovered the dog wandering in his neighbor’s yard and was trying to read its tags when Sinbad attacked him. The dog bit McCarty’s wrists and grabbed onto his ankles, which knocked him over. The dog was aiming for his throat when a neighbor who saw the attack kicked the dog off McCarty.

City Councilman Michael Robbins said owners Melinie and John Prosk, who would not comment about their dog, argued that 5 1/2-year-old Sinbad is not violent. Robbins said the dog has been quarantined since the attack and animal officials have confirmed that the dog is vicious.

“What is alarming about this mauling is that it would be perfectly natural for a small child to do what Mr. McCarty did,” Robbins said. “We voted to keep the dog out of the community because it poses such a dangerous threat to people given the unexpected and unprovoked mauling of Mr. McCarty.”

Robbins said the owners will be responsible for finding care for the animal outside El Segundo.