James McNally, the dog bite solicitor, appears on the Vanessa Feltz TV show
James McNally, known in Britain’s media simply as ‘the dog bite solicitor’, appeared on the Vanessa Feltz TV show to discuss an incident in east London’s Tower Hamlets that resulted in two ‘out of control’ dogs being shot dead by the metropolitan police.
Watch James’s interview with Vanessa Feltz here.
The police had been called to the Limehouse district of London after a woman was reported as having been mauled in a horrifying attack.
Videos posted on social media show police officers engaged in row with a man with two dogs on leads. Both dogs were then shot dead while the owner was tasered and pinned to the ground.
James was invited onto the Vanessa Feltz Show in his capacity as the country’s leading specialist in animal law, an expertise which has led to him becoming known simply as ‘the dog bite solicitor’. Asked by Vanessa Feltz whether tougher laws were required, James explained that in all the cases he and his team had dealt with, the injuries sustained were always avoidable. It was not a case, he said, of one or two particular breeds being responsible for the epidemic of dog bites in the UK. He explained that the picture is far more complex, and little will be achieved by banning certain breeds. Ultimately, it comes down to the conduct of dog owners and the simple precautions they can take to avoid innocent people being bitten by their dogs.
James told Vanessa that banning certain breeds will be no more effective in curbing the growing problem of dog attacks as banning Ferraris would be in dealing with speeding.
The Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards has said it will review the circumstances of the incident after witnesses complained that the shootings were excessive and unnecessary.
James said:
“This latest incident on the streets of London underlines the seriousness of the problem we are now facing in this country and although the images are shocking and tragic, you would hope that they will finally force the government to step up and address the changes that are desperately needed to current legislation and dog ownership. We are receiving calls every day from people whose lives have been impacted because of the actions of irresponsible dog owners. We do all we can to recover the compensation they deserve but I am sure if you asked any one of them they would say that no amount of money could recompense them for the horrible trauma they have been through.”
