At a Glance
- Koko Miller, 57, is on trial for criminally negligent homicide after her two Great Dane-mastiff mixes fatally attacked 6-year-old Loyalty Scott in December 2023.
- The boy suffered 25-50 cuts, facial fractures, and neck injuries; both dogs were later euthanized.
- Miller’s attorney says she fought the dogs and tried to shield the child; prosecutors call the death “avoidable” and “predictable.”
- Why it matters: The case tests how far owners must go to secure dangerous dogs when children visit.
A Portland, Oregon, woman is on trial this week after her two dogs mauled a 6-year-old boy to death in her garage, prompting charges of criminally negligent homicide and related counts.
Koko Miller, 57, faces one count each of criminally negligent homicide and maintaining a dangerous dog, plus two counts of first-degree criminal mistreatment tied to the Dec. 3, 2023, attack that killed Loyalty Scott, according to prosecutors cited by local outlets.
The Attack
Miller was babysitting Loyalty, a longtime friend’s grandson, and had agreed to drive him to school that morning. While inside her Parkrose Heights garage, the two Great Dane-mastiff mixes turned on the child, News Of Losangeles previously reported.
Portland police found the boy dead at the scene. Miller sustained minor injuries and was treated at a hospital. Officers later euthanized the two dogs involved; a third dog inside the home did not participate in the mauling.
Prosecution: “Avoidable and Predictable”
During opening statements on Monday, Jan. 12, a prosecutor told the court Loyalty’s death “was avoidable, and at some level, predictable,” KGW-TV reported.
Miller told detectives the boy opened the garage door and “he knew he shouldn’t have opened the door,” the station added.
Defense: “She Did Everything She Could”
Defense attorney Ryan Corbridge said Miller battled one of the dogs “for what felt like an eternity” on the day of the incident.
“She did everything she could to put herself between the dog and the child,” Corbridge said. “When she had nothing left physically, she yelled for the child to run. He said he could not. Ms. Miller ran to retrieve her firearm in an attempt to stop the dog. When she returned, the dog trotted past her. It was then, only then, that she realized the child was no longer alive.”
Medical Findings
A medical examiner counted 25-50 cuts on Loyalty’s body and found “fractures of basically all the bones in his face,” plus neck trauma, KPTV reported.
Grandmother’s Testimony
Loyalty’s grandmother, Rena Scott, testified she and Miller had been friends for years and that Miller regularly took the boy to school before heading to work. Scott said she never saw the dogs act aggressively but assumed they would be kenneled whenever Loyalty visited.
“He was a very smart kid,” Scott said in court. “It didn’t matter how big or small the animal was, he loved them.”
Remembering Loyalty
A GoFundMe campaign organized after the tragedy described Loyalty as a child who “always had a smile on his face and there was no way anyone could be in a bad mood around him.”
Key Takeaways
- The bench trial hinges on whether Miller’s actions-or lack thereof-amount to criminal negligence.
- Prosecutors must prove the dogs’ danger was foreseeable and that Miller failed to protect the child.
- The defense argues Miller intervened heroically and had no warning the pets would attack.
The trial continues.
