So how many years is the guy looking at in prison? I have no idea of Holland's sentencing system.
I wish the dog had had a chance to take a piece of him before the cops got there.
Hi Chris!
This is the city of Holland in Michigan! The attacker will face a 20 year sentence for home invasion, which could never happen in Europe!
In Germany Pitballs are required by law to have a mouth protector if they are in a public area and have to be on a lease as shown on this pic.
I imagine the European Holland is similar so a Pit Bull probably couldn't protect you in these countries very well!
Here's another article from the Holland Sentinel
www.hollandsentinel.com/news/x1931068355/Dog-thwarts-estranged-husbands-attack QUOTE:
By ANDREA GOODELL
The Holland Sentinel
Posted Apr 09, 2009 @ 10:25 PM
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Holland, MI — She was getting ready for bed just before 11 p.m. Wednesday, April 8, when she heard the screaming.
Blitz, her 2-year-old purebred pit bull, heard, too.
“My dog charged past me and saved the day,” said the neighbor who came to the woman’s aid.
Steven Paul Schumacher, was dragging his estranged wife across South Shore Drive, police and neighbors say. Blitz ran at the couple, barking, giving the woman an opportunity to get away.
The Sentinel has opted not to run the victim’s name at this time.
Schumacher, 33, will face up to 20 years for felony home invasion and up to 93 days for domestic assault charges. He was arraigned in Holland District Court Thursday afternoon, April 9. Although police filed a kidnapping complaint, county prosecutors have not filed a charge.
“The investigation is ongoing, but the facts we have at this point support the charges,” Holland police Capt. Rick Walters said.
Schumacher looked down at his lap or up at the television screen, hands folded during the video arraignment. District Court Judge Susan Jonas ordered a $200,000 cash surety bond, no contact with his estranged wife and a global positioning monitoring system be in place before he would be released.
He nodded his head, acknowledging the judge’s orders. His preliminary hearing is April 24.
“We’ll never know what could have happened, but we’re fortunate that this neighbor overhead what was taking place, and the dog running outside created a window of opportunity for the victim to reach safety,” Walters said. “Without that happening and without 911 being contacted, you’ll never know what may or may not have happened.”
By the time one next-door neighbor realized what was happening, police were on the scene, she said.
She heard a scuffle on Thomas Avenue, a woman screaming, “He’s going to kill me,” then a dog barking. She thought maybe someone had been attacked by a dog.
The dog’s owner, who asked not to be named, said screaming brought her to her front door.
Blitz is a sweet-tempered dog who jumps up to sniff and lick visitors, but was fierce when it counted, the single mom of two said.
“He spooked the guy enough that she got loose,” the woman said. She stopped Blitz before he had a chance to bite Schumacher.
The victim was in a robe and bare feet as she ran past her neighbor and into the woman’s house where the two called 911.
Schumacher sat on the lawn yelling until police arrived.
“I couldn’t make it out because my dog was still barking,” the woman said. “The adrenaline wore off and reality set in that this was too close a call.”
Schumacher was armed with a large kitchen knife and possibly a hammer when he broke a glass door and into the home where his estranged wife is now living with friends on the 400 block of nearby Thomas Avenue and assaulted her in her bedroom, according to court documents and police. The documents also state he may have had bungee cords with him. According to the documents, police believe alcohol may have been a factor in the alleged assault.
She broke free and ran into the street where he caught up with her. That’s when the neighbor heard the yells for help and intervened, according to a police statement. His car was found nearby, along the direction he was dragging her.
The couple has been separated for a short time and divorce proceedings have begun, according to court documents.
Schumacher, an accountant at Meijer, Tolman and VanLet in Zeeland, has no prior criminal record. He told Jonas he could afford his own attorney.
What could go through one’s mind as something like this is happening?
“Nothing,” the pit bull’s owner said. “Pure adrenaline was getting me through.”
By noon Thursday, she still hadn’t slept.