Owner of alleged dangerous Doberman to appear in court after post woman attacked

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A man accused of being in charge of a dog considered dangerously out of control after a postwoman was injured while on her round is to appear in court.

Sharon Singer was injured by a black Doberman while making her postal delivery to a property in Wrangle on July 4 this year.

And now, the dog's owner, Julian Palfreyman, 49, of Gold Fen Bank in Wrangle has been summoned to appear at Boston Magistrates Court today, Wednesday, September 27 to answer the charge under the Dangerous Dogs Act.

At the time of the incident, Mrs Singer, 47, suffered 19 separate injuries and was rushed to Pilgrim Hospital in Boston with bites on her arms, legs, back, backside and hands.

Following the incident, The Communications Workers Union called for tougher dog control laws under it's 'Bite Back' Campaign.


The case is set to be heard by magistrates from 10am.

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Attack dog owner let off 'scot free' and told to muzzle pet

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A man whose dog attacked a postwoman has been ordered to pay £1,000 to the victim and was given a community order.

Sharron Singer needed reconstructive surgery on her arms and legs after she was bitten by a Doberman while on her round in Wrangle, near Boston, in July.

Julian Palfreyman, 49, of Goldfen Bank, Wrangle, was sentenced at Boston Magistrates' Court after he admitted a charge under the Dangerous Dogs Act.

Mrs Singer's husband, Dave, said he was "disappointed" with the sentence.

Palfreyman, who pleaded guilty to owning a dog that was dangerously out of control, was told to keep his pet muzzled while in public places and take measures to protect visitors in the area around his home.

He was also ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work when he was sentenced on Wednesday.

Mr Singer, who is also a postal worker, said: "I am extremely disappointed with the judge's decision - I just think he values the dog's life more than my wife's."

"He [the defendant] has got off scot-free," he added.

The 47-year-old postal worker was left with "significant" injuries when she was mauled by Palfreyman's black dog, called Mezzie, while making a delivery to his home on 4 July.

She had to undergo "months" of surgery and skin grafts to repair muscles, tendons, nerves and ligament damage to her arm, her husband said.


The postwoman suffered "significant" injuries to her arms and legs

Mr Singer said his wife was having an operation in London for nerve damage to her arm.

Both are currently off work, and Mr Singer said he was suffering from post-traumatic shock.

He said his children, aged 10 and 11, have had nightmares about what happened to their mother, and despite having two dogs in the family, he said the ordeal had left him cautious of strange dogs.

At the time of the attack, both Royal Mail and the Communication Workers Union (CWU) union appealed for "all dog owners to be more responsible and to control and restrain" their pets during deliveries.

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Savaged postwoman 'devastated' after a court fails to order dog's destruction

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A postwoman left with 19 wounds after being savaged by a dangerous dog has been left "devastated" after a court failed to order the animal's destruction.

Sharon Singer, 47, was out on her round in Wrangle on July 4 when she was left with huge wounds to her arms and legs as she was mauled by a Doberman.

Mrs Singer has since undergone a number of operations to repair muscles, tendons, nerves and ligament damage - but has been left with no feeling in her left arm.

The dog's owner, Julian Palfreyman, appeared in court on Wednesday, September 27, and was ordered to pay £1,000 compensation after admitting owning a dangerous dog at Boston Magistrates' Court.

But despite an appeal from the prosecution, the dog that attacked Sharon will not be destroyed.

Sharon said: "I'm really disappointed with the judge's decision and the fact that the dogs will be back to normality.

"I'm a dog lover myself and have two black labs but I would never wish this to happen to anybody else.

"I can't believe that the dogs have been returned home and not destroyed. It just seems like such a waste of time and taxpayers' money."


Sharon's husband David, who also works for Royal Mail, added: "Never in my 16 years working as a postie, have I seen something as dangerous as this. I've been bitten a couple of times and barked at by dogs, but nothing like this.

"My wife and I were both working on that route and we had never seen a dog at that property so she wouldn't have known the dogs were there.

"The judicial system just seems so wrong to me. It's added to the torment of this attack."

Officials at CWU union have been left angered by the court result.

Dave Joyce, health and safety officer, said: "To say our members at Boston are angry is an understatement

“Three thousand postal workers are attacked by dogs every year and we've seen a number of really bad attacks just recently.


“The CWU fought for seven years to get the Dangerous Dogs Act strengthened and extended to protect our members from attacks on private property and whilst we commend the police for expediting the investigation and we welcome the prompt prosecution, a prosecution that wouldn't have happened prior to 2014 when the CWU got the law changed, this sentence doesn't go far enough.

“There has been two Sentencing Council reviews, following CWU pressure but still the courts are inconsistent when handing down sentences and ancillary orders.‎ We need deterrents to be effective and in doing so raise public awareness.

"The court has the power to issue Destruction Orders on their dogs involved and can disqualify the convicted owner from keeping dogs for a number of years up to a life ban but astoundingly the court failed to do either?

"The court did order that the dogs be muzzled in public, which is good as far as it goes, but the attack on Sharon took place on private property whilst she was delivering the mail. A risk therefore continues to exist with visitors to the property where the dogs are kept and that's a concern."


“Some owners voluntarily destroy dogs after such a savage attack. This obviously didn't happen either.”

Sharon, who had been a postwoman for 19 years, was attacked while delivering mail to Palfreyman's detached house in Wrangle.


The court heard how the mum-of-two let herself in through a gate when she then saw a Doberman she had never seen before, barking at her.

Sharon was afraid the dog might attack her so she put her hands up in front of her and backed slowly away.

But without any warning, a second Doberman, called Mezzie, "came from nowhere" and attacked her.

Prosecutor Jim Clare said Sharon was bitten severely on the left forearm, she screamed out in pain and for help but was then bitten on her arms, legs and hands.

He said that after a "few seconds", Palfreyman, ran out and shouted at the dogs.

The court heard how the owner grabbed the dog but it broke free and again attacked her again, biting her on the lower back and bottom.

Sharon managed to escape and get into her van before being taken to Boston Pilgrim Hospital, by Palfreyman where she spent four days.

But magistrates heard how months after the attack, Sharon still has difficulty sleeping, was still in pain and was suffering from muscle atrophy.

Surgeons at The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital performed a further operation to repair the nerve in her forearm.

She has since undergone dozens of operations to repair muscles, tendons, nerves and ligament damage (Image: SWNS-Cambridge)
Sharon hopes to return to work but is unable when she may be able to do so as she has no feeling in her hand and is unable to drive.

Magistrates were asked to order the immediate destruction of the dog however the judge issued a contingent destruction order which effectively acts as a kind of 'suspended sentence' on the dog instead.

Her husband, David, 41, added: "My wife is a positive and really strong person but she's been in such a lot of pain.

"Thankfully she's coped with it all really well emotionally but I'm just worried that it's going to catch up with her in the future.

"She hasn't broken down over the experience and from the shock of it all. When it happened, she thought she would be able to go back to work in a couple of weeks but it won't be for months."

During the trial, Palfreyman's solicitor Andrew Wheldon said there was now increased security at his house with double gates, and anyone visiting had to ring a bell to obtain access through an electric gate that could only be opened from the inside.

The postbox is now outside the property.

Palfreymen was ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work for the community and to pay £1,000 compensation to Sharon and court costs of £85.