Pair tried to aid man who died in dog attack

TUCUMCARI — A jogger had encountered the pack of five dogs shortly before they fatally mauled 64-year-old Stanley Hartt, and two men approached the bloody scene when Hartt still was alive but they were unable to save him.

A New Mexico State Police report obtained through a public records request offers more details of the fatal February attack in Tucumcari, in which Hartt, a resident of the small city, died of blood loss.

Mary Olimpia Montoya, 51, and her son Kristopher Jaquaris Morris, 27, both of Tucumcari, were charged with involuntary manslaughter and a count of having a dangerous dog that caused a death.

The dogs had escaped Montoya’s backyard through a broken fence, the report says.

Former Mesalands Community College athletic director Paul Moss said he was jogging when he saw five dogs coming over a hill toward him around 8:30 p.m. Feb. 1, the state police report says.

He waved a bag at the dogs to deter them from approaching, Moss said, adding the dogs passed him and continued down the road, where he said he saw in the darkness what appeared to be a man.

“Mr. Moss stated the male turned east as Mr. Moss continued to jog,” the report states. “Once Mr. Moss was down the road he could hear as he described ‘moaning and groaning’ coming from the east.”

Moss told police he retrieved two pieces of metal from the college and walked to where he heard the moaning. He saw a pack of dogs, and he began to hit the ground with the metal. The dogs initially began to walk toward Moss but returned to biting and dragging “either a person or dog.”

Moss said he could not see well because the area was dark. He ran back to the college in search of help. Moss and Robert Mahanna then drove to the scene in a pickup.

“They were able to scare the dogs away and that’s when they observed a severely injured male,” the report states.

Mahanna, who works at the college’s foundry as a metal casting instructor, said when Moss came to the foundry building to get help, Moss told him he could hear a man yelling who was being attacked by dogs.

When Mahanna and Moss reached the scene, Mahanna said “debris was everywhere,” and he called 911 when he realized there was a man lying there.

“During this time, the dogs were still near the area and starting to return. Mr. Mahanna was honking the horn on his truck, successfully scaring the dogs away,” the report stated.

Mahanna noted there was no lighting on the street.

“When looking at the gentleman, he stated there was slight movement coming from him, along with groaning in pain,” the report stated. “Mr. Mahanna said the gentleman was on his stomach. ...

“Mahanna was able to see a ‘pretty bad’ injury on one of the legs of the gentleman and informed emergency communications that an ambulance was necessary.”

By the time emergency medical workers arrived, however, Hartt had died.

Police observed blood trails, indicating Hartt had been attacked down the street before he fell face down.

The state Office of the Medical Investigator examined Hartt’s body at the scene. Flesh had been torn away in several areas and there were bite marks throughout his body, the report states.

Evidence indicated the dogs began attacking his legs first, though he tried to fight back.

“Because of the viciousness and number of dogs, Mr. Hartt was overcome by the animals and was killed on the roadway,” the report states.

One of the dogs, later identified as a pitbull mix named Zina, was fatally shot the night of the attack by a Quay County sheriff ’s deputy “to prevent any other attacks to the public,” the report states.

The other dogs were captured and impounded at the city kennel as evidence.

A sheriff ’s deputy followed one of the dogs to Montoya and Morris’ home, where Montoya identified photos of the dogs involved the attack as hers.

Montoya said Zina and the other dogs jumped or broke through their backyard fence, which officers reported was “in severe disrepair.” She said Zina had bitten two other people and would growl at people walking by the residence.

Montoya pleaded not guilty last week to the charges against her.

She and Morris could face up to six years in prison and a maximum $5,000 fine for their third-degree felony dangerous-dog charge, the most serious count they face.

Morris’ arraignment is scheduled June 14.