XL bully attack was a 'tragedy waiting to happen'

Leaving a 68-year-old woman with limited mobility in charge of 10 XL bully dogs was a "tragedy waiting to happen", a court has been told.

Esther Martin was killed by two of Ashley Warren's dogs at his house in Jaywick, Essex, on 3 February 2024.

Prosecutors at Chelmsford Crown Court said the combined weight of all 10 dogs inside the property was up to 190kg (29st 13lb).

Warren, 41, denies owning or being in charge of the two dogs - named Beauty and Bear - responsible for mauling Martin to death.

The amateur rapper had asked Martin, his mother-in-law, to watch the dogs so he could film a music video in London.

Summing up the case, prosecutor Christopher Paxton KC said Martin was 5ft 3in (1.6m) and had "restricted" movement due to a hip replacement, arthritis and a limp.

Paxton said it was a "ludicrous suggestion" to say she could be considered a "fit and proper person" to control the two adult XL bullies and eight puppies.

He said the "combined weight of the pack" was up to 190kg and the dogs were "unpredictable, towering, muscular" animals.

Warren was in a relationship with Martin's daughter for 14 years before she died suddenly in 2021.

He would have been aware of her mobility issues and had "no basis" to believe she could "physically stop the dogs", Paxton said.

"No-one would reasonably believe that Esther could control those dogs with the physicality and power that they clearly possessed," the prosecutor added.

"Such was the ferocity of the dogs that police officers were unable to enter the home until they had deployed the Tasers, entering not just with Tasers but with shields."

Jurors heard Martin sustained a minimum of 60 mostly dog-related injuries before her death and the animals had not been walked for four weeks before the attack.

Allan Compton KC, defending, said there had been "not a single incident of concern" about Beauty and Bear prior to them killing Martin.

He said: "With all breeds you can have good dogs and you can have bad dogs.

"What is far more important, we suggest, is the consistent behaviour of the dogs or a dog over the months and years."

The mauling came two days after the government made it a criminal offence to own an XL bully in England and Wales without a certificate of exemption.

Warren has also denied having possession of a knife in a public place when he was arrested.

The trial continues.

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