Latest news with #MaryIoannidis
News.com.au
16-07-2025
- News.com.au
Photos reveal bloody aftermath of $100k Sydney staffy attack
Graphic photos have revealed the extent of a 'violent and terrifying' staffy attack involving a woman and her 11-year-old Shih Tzu in Sydney's south. Bridal shop owner Mary Ioannidis, 54, was awarded more than $100,000 in damages this week in the NSW District Court after her dog Lexi was attacked in April 2020 by a greyhound Staffordshire bull terrier. The court heard how the terrier was unrestrained when it launched at Ms Ioannidis and her dog, who was on a retractable leash, while on a walk on a suburban street in Mortdale. Photos provided to by Ms Ioannidis's legal team show the extent of the attack, which left Lexi with an amputated left leg. One photo shows Ms Ioannidis sitting down after the attack, covered in blood. Shine Lawyers associate Brittany Vella said her client had suffered 'profound consequences as a result' with the court finding Ms Ioannidis had been left with PTSD as a result of the attack. The staffy's owner, owned by Melissa Carretero, was ordered to pay a total $101,788.63 in damages plus Ms Ioannidis' legal costs. 'There's not just the physical injuries, but long-term psychological trauma as well,' Ms Vella told 'Mary and Lexi were simply out for a walk when they were set upon by an unrestrained dog- an animal which dwarfed Lexi and which would have easily killed her had it not been for Mary's desperate efforts to save her. 'This was a truly horrifying attack and I hope [Tuesday's] judgment serves as a warning for dog owners to make sure their pets are always restrained and under control.' The attack Ms Ioannidis told the court she was left bloodied as she tried to save Lexi during the attack. She said the large dog kept throwing Lexi from 'side to side' and ripped her 'whole paw' off at the joint. 'He kept running back and launching at me and he just kept attacking, and he just didn't stop. He didn't stop, and I was falling over and trying to get on my feet,' she said. Ms Ioannidis also told the court she had her fingernails 'completely ripped off' in the chaos of the attack. The court heard how there was luckily a vet nearby that provided Lexi with emergency treatment, including amputation of the leg at the shoulder. Lexi has since died due to unrelated causes. Ms Ioannidis told the court the trauma left her with crippling anxiety and said she has lost 10 kilograms since the attack. Her partner said Ms Ioannidis now 'locks herself in the house' and said it was 'very hard to persuade her to leave.' 'Mentally, I don't cope with very much at the moment or since,' Ms Ioannidis told the court. 'Just my anxiety, being outside, having to run into any dogs. I didn't want to have to deal with any people.' 'I don't do anything. I don't want to go anywhere. It doesn't leave my head. I can't sleep. If I go for a walk, it has to be with someone, and I'm constantly looking over my shoulder.' Staffy owner's defence Ms Carretero admitted her dog attacked Lexi but denied it attacked Ms Ioannidis. She argued to the court that Ms Ioannidis should not be entitled to recover damages for psychiatric injury suffered 'as a result of what happened to Lexi'. She also argued Ms Ioannidis continued to work and often went to the gym since the attack. District Court Judge John Catsanos SC found Ms Ioannidis had suffered economic loss and would continue to do so due to her PTSD. 'On balance, I find that the dog attack caused the plaintiff to suffer psychiatric injury in the form of PTSD,' Judge Catsanos said in his decision. '[Ms Ioannidis] suffers a genuine psychiatric condition as a result of the attack.' Judge Catsanos ruled damages for $49,500 for non-economic losses to the mental harm caused, as well as $15,000 for future mental health treatments and $35,000 due to past and future lost income. He also ruled an amount of $2,288.63 for medication and mental health costs, which Ms Ioannidis had paid since the attack, with the total damages coming to $101,788.63.
Daily Mail
16-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Bridal shop owner awarded $100,000 after her beloved Shih Tzu Lexi's leg was severed in vicious dog attack
A bridal shop owner has been awarded over $100,000 in damages after her beloved Shih Tzu's leg was severed during a 'terrifying and violent' dog attack. Mary Ioannidis, now 54, was taking her 11-year-old Shih Tzi Lexi for a walk in Mortdale, in Sydney 's south, in April 2020 when the dog was mauled by a large greyhound Staffordshire bull terrier. Lexi's front left leg was completed severed and had to be amputated while her owner suffered various lacerations and abrasion while trying to pull the dogs apart. Ms Ioannidis has since been diagnosed with PTSD and remains traumatised by the attack five years later. She launched proceedings in NSW District Court seeking damages under the Companion Animals Act against Melissa Carretero, the owner of the terrier. Harrowing details of the vicious attack were laid bare when Judge John Catsanos SC handed down his decision on Tuesday. The court heard how the unrestrained terrier ran towards Lexi and was 'throwing her from side to side' as Ms Ioannidis tried desperately to pull her away. 'He kept running back and launching at me and he just kept attacking, and he just didn't stop. He didn't stop, and I was falling over and trying to get on my feet,' Ms Ioannidis was quoted as saying by Judge Catsanos. The greyhound cross 'ripped Lexi's whole paw off at the joint' and bit Ms Ioannidis 'across the neck, her face around the chin, her arm and her legs'. A photo supplied to Daily Mail Australia showed the aftermath of the attack, with Ms Ioannidis seen covered in blood. 'The plaintiff described fingernails being completely ripped off in the chaos of the attack as she was falling over and tripping on the lead, all the time trying not to let go of Lexi,' Judge Catsanos said in his decision, 'By any measure, this was a violent and terrifying attack.' The judge noted that Carretero agreed her dog attacked Lexi, but not Ms Ioannidis. 'In any event, I am comfortably satisfied that as well as being wounded, the plaintiff was attacked by the defendant's dog,' he said. His decision also detailed the psychological impact the attack had on Ms Ioannidis. She struggled to take Lexi for walks, suffers ongoing anxiety while outdoors and now only works at her bridal boutique, Mary Ioannidis Couture, two days a week. 'I am nonetheless satisfied that the plaintiff has suffered some loss of earning capacity as a result of the psychological injury caused by the dog attack,' he said. 'I find that the dog attack caused the plaintiff to suffer psychiatric injury in the form of PTSD. [Ms Ioannidis] suffers a genuine psychiatric condition as a result of the attack.' Ms Ioannidis received $101,788.63 in damages, with Carretero ordered by the judge to pay her legal costs. 'Mary has suffered profound consequences as a result of this attack,' Shine Lawyers associate Brittany Vella told Daily Mail Australia. 'Mary and Lexi were simply out for a walk when they were set upon by an unrestrained dog - an animal which dwarfed Lexi and which would have easily killed her had it not been for Mary's desperate efforts to save her.' 'There's not just the physical injuries, but long-term psychological trauma as well. Lexi died last September due to unknown causes.
News.com.au
15-07-2025
- News.com.au
Staffy owner ordered to pay more than $100k over ‘violent and terrifying' attack
EXCLUSIVE A dog owner has been ordered to pay more than $100,000 after their greyhound-staffy attacked a small dog and their owner, who was left with PTSD after the attack, a court has heard. Bridal shop owner Mary Ioannidis, 54, lodged a claim for damages in the NSW District Court after her 11-year-old Shih Tzu named Lexi was attacked in April 2020 while on a walk in Sydney's south. The court heard how Lexi had to have her front left leg completely amputated due to the 'violent and terrifying' attack, which occurred on a suburban street in Mortdale. However, it was the psychiatric impact to Ms Ioannidis that led to damages claim, with John Catsanos SC finding the owner has suffered PTSD as a result of the attack. The court heard how the large greyhound Staffordshire bull terrier, owned by Melissa Carretero, was unrestrained when it viciously attacked Lexi, who was on a retractable lead. '[Ms Ioannidis] described graphically how [Ms Carretero's] dog grabbed Lexi and was throwing her from side to side as [Ms Ioannidis] tried desperately to pick her up,' Judge Catsanos said in his decision. Ms Ioannidis told the court: 'He kept running back and launching at me and he just kept attacking, and he just didn't stop. He didn't stop, and I was falling over and trying to get on my feet.' The court decision detailed how the staffy 'ripped Lexi's whole paw off at the joint' and also bit Ms Ioannidis 'across the neck, her face around the chin, her arm and her legs'. '[Ms Ioannidis] described fingernails being completely ripped off in the chaos of the attack as she was falling over and tripping on the lead, all the time trying not to let go of Lexi,' the decision stated. The court heard how there was luckily a vet nearby which provided Lexi with emergency treatment, including amputation of the leg at the shoulder. Lexi has since died due to unrelated causes. Ms Ioannidis told the court the trauma left her with crippling anxiety and said she has lost 10 kilograms since the attack. Her partner said Ms Ioannidis now 'locks herself in the house' and said it was 'very hard to persuade her to leave.' 'Mentally, I don't cope with very much at the moment or since,' Ms Ioannidis told the court. 'Just my anxiety, being outside, having to run into any dogs. I didn't want to have to deal with any people.' 'I don't do anything. I don't want to go anywhere. It doesn't leave my head. I can't sleep. If I go for a walk, it has to be with someone, and I'm constantly looking over my shoulder.' Staffy owner's defence Ms Carretero admitted her dog attacked Lexi but denied it attacked Ms Ioannidis. She argued to the court that Ms Ioannidis should not be entitled to recover damages for psychiatric injury suffered 'as a result of what happened to Lexi'. She also argued Ms Ioannidis continued to work and often went to the gym since the attack. 'A direct attack was made on the [Ms Ioannidis] bona fides in terms of malingering and exaggerating and it was put to her that there were Instagram posts of her at weddings,' Judge Catsanos wrote in his decision. '[Ms Ioannidis] accepted that she had attended family weddings but said this was very different to working and she nonetheless had difficulties in attending family functions. 'She recounted how on one occasion she had to write a letter to the wedding venue to be able to bring Lexi with her.' Judge Catsanos found Ms Ioannidis had suffered economic loss and would continue to do so due to her PTSD. 'On balance, I find that the dog attack caused the plaintiff to suffer psychiatric injury in the form of PTSD,' Judge Catsanos said in his decision. '[Ms Ioannidis] suffers a genuine psychiatric condition as a result of the attack.' Judge Catsanos ruled damages in the amount of $49,500 for non-economic losses in relation to the mental harm caused, as well as $15,000 for future mental health treatments and $35,000 due to past and future lost income. He also ruled an amount of $2,288.63 for medication and mental health costs which Ms Ioannidis had paid since the attack, with the total damages coming to $101,788.63. Judge Catsanos also ruled Ms Carretero pay Ms Ioannidis' legal costs.
