MAN DIES AFTER BEING ATTACKED BY HIS PITBULLS; AUTOPSY SHEDS LIGHT ON A DIFFERENT CAUSE OF DEATH

Following the death of Dominic Anthony Cooper, a Los Angeles County Medical Examiner has come out with an autopsy, which reveals that he may not have succumbed to the wounds inflicted by his pit bulls. According to the analysis, the man expired from “multiple traumatic injuries” even after being allegedly attacked by his own canines, as reported by PEOPLE. Cooper was a pitbull breeder, but the medical examiner has not been able to find evidence for an attack by the dogs that could've caused the injuries leading to his death. There were no hints of any fatal injuries that impacted "major vessels or internal organs." In the examiner's opinion, the reason behind Cooper's death was “likely multifactorial” and could not be attributed to the dogs alone.

On February 16, the authorities found Cooper's lifeless body in a kennel in his backyard in Compton, California, which was inhabited by a total of 13 pit bulls, of which five were adult dogs, while eight were puppies. As per the surveillance footage acquired by the police, the man was seen cleaning his backyard and feeding the dogs just a day before the incident. In the evening, the adult dogs near the wire kennel unexpectedly pounced on him.“The dogs continued to attack the decedent and tear off his clothes. After approximately 5-6 minutes, the decedent got up from the ground and secured himself into one of the kennels,” per the report. In order to save himself the man escaped to the top of a small dog house, but soon after fell to the ground and became unconscious. The authorities were called to the scene by Cooper's girlfriend, and the chain of events made the authorities conclude that the injuries inflicted during the attack by the dogs on Cooper might be the cause of his death.

But now the autopsy does not confirm this hypothesis, and the medical examiner has pointed out factors like “blood loss,” “physical exhaustion from the attack,” and “the possibility of hypothermia” as the possible reasons behind Cooper's death. Considering all their findings, the examiner has ruled that the man's death happened by "accident" but also clarified in their report that “this cannot be concluded with certainty.” The man had “multiple penetrating [and] traumatic injuries,” with wounds being of both "upper and lower extremities.” The abrasions did not follow a particular pattern and ranged from "1/4 to 3/4 inch" in size. Most of the wounds were concentrated in his "extremities and buttock," with some looking like "bite marks."

Cooper is survived by his three daughters and now the family is raising funds for them, describing his death as an accident. At the same time, the findings of the autopsy will change the direction of the probe to point out what really led to the dog breeder's death.