Mom Discusses Guilty Verdict in Dog Maul Trial
March 22 -- After a San Francisco woman and her husband were convicted in the dog mauling death of Diane Whipple, the victim's mother and the lead prosecutor in the case voiced satisfaction today with the decision.
"It was a great relief," the victim's mother, Penny Whipple-Kelly, said today.
"I was very happy, because I think it was a just verdict. I do believe that it was second-degree murder," she told Good Morning America.
Marjorie Knoller faces 15 years to life in prison for her second-degree murder conviction in the death of neighbor Whipple, 33.
Knoller, 46, and her husband, Robert Noel, 60, were both convicted of involuntary manslaughter and owning a mischievous animal that caused a death.
Knoller and Noel owned the two Presa Canario dogs that attacked and killed their next-door neighbor, Whipple, in the hallway of their apartment building on Jan. 26, 2001.
Noel did not face a second-degree murder charge because he was not present at the time of the attack. He faces up to four years in prison for involuntary manslaughter. Ownership of a mischievous animal carries a penalty of up to three years in prison.
Mother, Juror Never Believed Knoller
Whipple-Kelly stressed she felt Knoller was never sincere in her apologies for the deadly incident.
"When Marjorie Knoller got on the stand and testified, the first thing she said was how sorry she was for the family, and friends of Diane Whipple, and it looked so staged and so contrite," Whipple-Kelly said.
Jury foreman Don Newton agreed.
"We found Marjorie Knoller's testimony throughout to be unbelievable," he told GMA today. "And we do not accept her version of the story of what happened in the hallway."
Knoller's murder conviction was the first in a dog-mauling case in California and was believed to be only the third of its kind inrecent U.S. history.
The case sets a precedent for owners of violent animals, said James Hammer, the lead prosecutor in the case.
"The message is if you know that you have dogs that are vicious and have a propensity tobe aggressive towards people, the law will hold you accountable."
