Mourning parents question neighbors' plan to move dangerous dogs to Franklin County

Garner officials are deciding today whether two dogs that killed a child and injured her mother last month should be given back to their owners.

Posted 9:40 p.m. Jun 21, 2021 — Updated 12:36 p.m. Jun 22, 2021

Amanda Lamb

, WRAL reporter

GARNER, N.C. — Since the April dog attack that killed Jayden Henderson, 7, and severely injured her mother, WRAL News employee Heather Trevaskis, the two animals involved have been in quarantine at the Wake County Animal Center while their owners try to get them back.

The latest twist is that the dog owners, Joseph and Amanda White, plan to sell their Garner home and move to property in Franklin County.

Attorneys tell WRAL News that whether they can take their dogs is unclear. While "dangerous dog" ordinances exist in both Wake and Franklin counties, no one can remember a case where owners have tried to get back dogs after they had killed someone.

North Carolina doesn't have a dangerous dog database. In fact, most states don't.

Boyd Sturges, Franklin County attorney, said, "We've never had a situation where dogs had killed a child and then people would want to bring them into our jurisdiction."

Should the Whites move to Franklin County, they would be required to put the dogs in a shelter until it could be determined if they meet the requirements of local law.

"If they were to come into our jurisdiction, Franklin County, they would have to comply with both state law and our ordinance, and our ordinance would dictate what they would have to do," Sturges said.

That ordinance requires the animal to be confined in a secure enclosure with a sign that reads "Warning! Dangerous Animal on Premises." Animals that attack after being deemed dangerous are subject to seizure and euthanasia in Franklin County.

Whether in Wake or Franklin County, Jayden's parents believe the dogs should not be allowed to live.

Heather Trevaskis (left) was badly injured in a dog attack that killed her child, Jayden Henderson. Jayden's father, Dave Henderson is at right.

Dave Henderson, husband of Trevaskis and father of Jayden, said his neighbor Joseph White assured him the dogs would be put down. "They assured me the dogs were not coming home," he said.

When the Whites decided instead to fight to keep their dogs, the Garner Police Department deemed them dangerous and denied the couple a dangerous dog permit.

"It’s very difficult to understand," Henderson said. "They're placing the value of these dogs over the life and welfare of my wife and my child. I just don't understand that."

"How do you take home a dog – I don’t care how close you are with them – that’s killed somebody?" Trevaskis asked.

The couple, who would rather focus on planning Jayden's memorial service, is instead worried about what will happen next.

"I shouldn’t have to worry about someone else getting hurt by the same animals that killed my daughter," Trevaskis said.

Garner officials tell WRAL News that the Whites will have to petition the court to get the dogs released from the Wake County Animal Center should they move. The dogs will be euthanized on July 3 if that doesn’t happen.

The Whites' attorney did not want to comment on their plans. Joseph White said he does not think WRAL News can be unbiased about the dogs due to the fact that Trevaskis works for the company.

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