RIVIERA BEACH, Fla. (CN) - National Football League wide receiver Pierre Garcon is facing a lawsuit over claims that pit bulls at his South Florida investment property escaped and mauled a teenager.
In a Palm Beach County lawsuit, Beatrice Delinois and Dennis Amius claim their sixteen-year-old son was walking through a neighborhood in Riviera Beach, when a pair of free-roaming pit bulls that had escaped Garcon's rental property pounced on the boy and bit him repeatedly.
Their attorney, Ernesto Santos of Halpern, Santos & Pinkert, told Courthouse News the teenager was treated for multiple puncture wounds at St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach. Santos identified defendant Garcon as the NFL star.
According to the lawsuit, the "two well fed ... spotted pit bulls" were able to escape through a poorly maintained fence on the property, where they were being used as guard dogs.
The city where the property is located has a high crime rate, and the use of dogs as security is common.
Santos said that the dogs were taken by Palm Beach County animal control agents and were put down. There had been prior incidents when the dogs escaped, he said.
"They were kept in doghouses outside on this property. They had been seen leaving the property regularly," he said in a brief interview.
Garcon and his company 101 W 17th St. LLC, which is also named as a defendant, "had actual and/or constructive knowledge of the presence of [the pit bulls] on the subject premises and their vicious and dangerous nature," the lawsuit reads.
A sports agency that lists Garcon as a client has not responded to a request for comment on the case. Attempts to reach the attorney listed at the lawsuit service address were unsuccessful.
The 31-year-old football player is known for his prolific years as a wide receiver for the Washington Redskins. He led the league in receptions in 2013.
Garcon had a successful year playing for the San Francisco 49ers in 2017, posting 500 yards in eight games before suffering a season-ending neck injury.
He was born in West Palm Beach, a city neighboring Riviera Beach. He's still active in the community, and awarded scholarship money to several students of his high school alma mater through his charitable foundation last year, according to a Palm Beach Post report.
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