The owner of a pitbull that attacked a woman leaving her permanently scarred was fined $7,000 and ordered to pay the victim $9,500 in compensation.

Last month, magistrate Tyrone Chin found Macray Bulford, 50, from Sandys, guilty of owning the dog that attacked and injured his former neighbour, Denise Steede, as well as not having a valid licence.

The court heard that the dog growled at Ms Steede before lunging at her while she was taking out the trash at her home on Grandstand Lane, on August 5, 2018. Pitbulls were illegal in Bermuda at that time.

Bulford and his son placed the dog in a headlock and used a knife and scissors to pull it off during the five-minute attack.

Ms Steede had almost 20 doctor’s appointments within six weeks to treat her wounds, which included nerve damage to her left hand. She told the court that Bulford helped clean the wounds and offered her compensation after the attack, but never followed through.

Prosecutor T’Deana Spencer told the court that Bulford was responsible for the “vicious and unprovoked attack” that left Ms Steede “physically, emotionally and mentally scarred”.

She added that Ms Steede cannot walk along the Railway Trail because of her fear of the animals.

Ms Spencer also highlighted that the attack caused Ms Steede to miss four days of work at one job and seven months at another.

She suggested Bulford be fined between $1,500 and $2,000 for having the unlicensed pet and between $2,000 and $3,000 for the injuries, and also requested that he paid $9,750 in compensation — to cover medical bills and work.

Highlighting that his client assisted Ms Steede during and after the incident, Bulford’s lawyer Bruce Swan suggested that he should be fined between $750 and $1,000 for the unlicensed dog and between $1,250 and $2,000 for the attack.

Mr Chin fined Bulford $3,000 for having an unlicensed dog and $4,000 for the attack. He ordered that Bulford also pay $9,500 in compensation.

• It is The Royal Gazette’s policy not to allow comments on stories regarding court cases. As we are legally liable for any libellous or defamatory comments made on our website, this move is for our protection as well as that of our readers