A teenager killed by an XL Bully in a horror home attack was 'bitten on face and neck', an inquest has heard. Morgan Dorsett, 19, suffered fatal injuries after and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Maria Voisin, senior coroner for Avon, opened an into Miss Dorsett’s death today. The inquest heard that a post-mortem examination gave a provisional cause of death as dog bites to Miss Dorsett’s neck.
Coroner's officer Alexis Camp told the hearing at that Miss Dorsett’s death in February was confirmed at by a paramedic at the scene in the Hartcliffe area of Bristol. Miss Dorsett was identified by her mother, Marie Smith, in the mortuary at Flax Bourton, near Bristol.
Ms Camp said: “Morgan received significant bites to her face and neck, resulting in her sad death.” She added: “I understand that there are family concerns regarding the police criminal investigation.”
Following the incident, the male dog, named Prince, was seized and put down. An autopsy later confirmed it belonged to the banned breed.
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Statements will be taken from Miss Dorsett's family, police and paramedics, with a full post-mortem report and toxicology report prepared ahead of the final inquest hearing. Maria Voisin, senior coroner for Avon, said: "Because of the pending criminal investigation, I am not going to list this. It will be on a date to be fixed."
Shocked neighbours described seeing the dog owner emerging from her house covered in blood on the day of the attack, shouting: "They killed my ." A man and a woman, both in their twenties, were arrested on suspicion of possession of a prohibited breed of dog, as well as on suspicion of being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control causing injury resulting in death.
They were both later released on conditional bail. neighbourhood inspector Terry Murphy said in a press conference the day after the incident: "Our thoughts, first and foremost, are with the family of the young woman who’s tragically died as a result of yesterday evening’s incident. They have been updated and will be supported by a family liaison officer.
"I’d also like to thank the officers and paramedics who attended yesterday evening and tried to save her life. Support is in place for them.
Friends of Morgan's family have so far raised more than £8,000 on a set up after her death, smashing their initial £4,000 target. The organisers said the money raised would help free the family from financial burdens, including funeral costs, and "allow them to process and grieve in their own way and time". Crowdfunder organiser Sharon Harris described Morgan, from Shropshire, as a "truly beautiful girl", and said in a tribute: "The tragedy of losing a loved one is painful, that pain must be unimaginable when you lose someone so young and in such a tragic way. Morgan was a a truly beautiful girl. One of the ‘blonde bombshells’. She was strong, kind and so full of life.
"The loss will be felt by all who knew her and no more than in our close community. I cannot find the words that are going to comfort her family, but I need to feel that I am doing something. The family will have not just their grief to deal with but practicalities too. I wanted to lighten that burden in some way.
"I think we can all show our love for such a beautiful girl by giving a small amount to help cover some of the financial burdens this family will undoubtedly face. Anything raised will be for the family to use to cover funeral and memorial costs. Allow the family time to grieve so covering essential bills while they take time from work, anything they need."
In England and Wales, owning an XL Bully dog without a valid Certificate of Exemption became a criminal offence on February 1, 2024. The deadline to apply for a Certificate of Exemption was July 31, 2024. The XL Bully breed was added to the Dangerous list after a string of deadly incidents, having been responsible for at least 16 fatal attacks in the UK in 2023 alone.
