Charges Upgraded For Father Of Boy Killed In Dog Mauling
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – A South Florida father charged in connection to the dog mauling death of his 4-year-old son, became emotional in court Thursday.
Javon Dade, 30, began crying when his charges were upgraded from child neglect to manslaughter.
Miami-Dade police said Dade, and his girlfriend, Alessandra Carrasco, 26; smoked marijuana laced with cocaine and fell asleep the day Javon Dade Junior was killed.
The child was attacked and killed by his father's dog, or dogs, on August 13th, in the yard of his father's home on SW 123rd Avenue in Goulds.
READ: Father, Girlfriend Charged In Boy's Mauling Death
His body was found in the backyard.
Carrasco, charged with child neglect, is out of jail on bond.
According to Dade's arrest report, he picked up the boy from his mother's residence around 9:30 p.m. on Aug. 12th, and then went to his home. After Javon Jr. fell asleep in a bedroom, his father and Carrasco "began smoking several marijuana cigarettes laced with cocaine," according to the report. Carrasco then fell asleep.
READ: Boy Mauled To Death By Dog(s) In Goulds
The following morning Dade and Carrasco woke up about 9 a.m. and Javon Jr. was nowhere to be found. Police received a missing person call more than an hour later, and quickly found the child dead in the tall grass of the rented home's sprawling back yard.
Police said while the front door to the home was locked, the rear sliding glass door was closed but unlocked.
Dade's dogs; a pit bull, two pit bull mixes and three puppies were seized by the county's Animal Services. A gray and white pit bull was euthanized because of his temperament. The five other dogs continue to be housed in a shelter.
READ: Dog Seized After Child's Deadly Mauling Attack Euthanized
According to the Department of Children and Families, Javon Dade Jr.'s parents had a history with the agency.
In 2011, the agency had received a complaint back in 2011 from a neighbor when Javon, who was 6-months-old, was living with his mother, dad and siblings at the Malibou Bay Apartments. The caller expressed concern about the "smell," the "feces," and the "danger" of the dogs being in the home. The DCF report discusses an incident in the prior year when both the mother and father were bitten while breaking up a fight among the dogs.
"Two of the dogs are pit bulldogs," the DCF report added. If the DCF investigator knew that it is illegal to keep pit bulls in Miami-Dade County, there is no mention of it, and no indication that animal services was informed of the situation.
The DCF probe concluded that Javon and his siblings were in a "moderate to high" risk environment, yet no action was taken to remove the children or the dogs. DCF investigators spoke with teachers, daycare workers and a doctor who said the children appeared healthy and well dressed.
Read the DCF documents, click here.
In another of several hotline reports to DCF about Javon's family, a caller said the boy's father, Javon Dade, Sr., was seen "selling cocaine" out of the front door of the home. The caller said the father brandished a handgun as he argued with his alleged drug customers. DCF's report noted the father's extensive history of arrest, primarily for drug offenses. Javon Dade, Sr. has been charged at least a dozen times in his adult history, primarily with drug violations involving cocaine and marijuana. Among his seven convictions are also one for battery and one for resisting arrest.
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