SAN ANTONIO – A balloon release was held Tuesday evening for a woman who died after she was bitten multiple times by her dog.
Simone Lyke, 32, died several days after the July 24 incident in the 1400 block of Patricia Drive, not far from Northwest Military Highway.
“This girl, right here, it was just a blessing to have her,” said a woman at the balloon release. “I just hate we’re standing here. There’s no way we should be standing here with this picture and with this shirt on, like there’s no way.”
The Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled Lyke’s cause of death as complications from a dog mauling.
The dog lunged at Lyke, and a nearby witness threw a pizza, which temporarily distracted the dog, according to a preliminary report from San Antonio police.
However, the dog, a male bully breed, bit Lyke several times, ACS Public Relations Manager Lisa Norwood told KSAT in an emailed statement.
SAPD said that Lyke yelled for someone to call 911 as the dog was attacking her.
Lyke and another person were both identified by ACS as the owners of the dog.
The other owner was issued multiple criminal citations for violations related to the bite and failing to provide proof of vaccination or a microchip for another animal in the residence, ACS said.
It is not immediately clear if Lyke and the other owner are related.
Witnesses at the scene told SAPD there had allegedly been previous incidents involving the dog, although the details of these incidents were unclear.
As of Wednesday morning, the dog remains in ACS quarantine.
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