Galesburg School Mourns Loss of Young Student
By: Alexandra Sutter WMBD/WYZZ
Updated: March 4, 2013
Galesburg Police are calling the death
of 7-year-old Ryan Maxwell tragic. Captain Rod Riggs said Ryan was very
familiar with the dog and it's unclear what caused it to attack.
Riggs said, "At the time we found the
dog during the attack, it was actually still attacking the boy. At that time,
we disengaged the dog from the victim and that's when he turned on one of our
officers."
Riggs said an officer shot the pit
bull on the spot out of defense.
Ryan was taken to the local hospital
where he later passed away from his injuries.
Nielson Elementary School Principal
Matt LeClere said it's a devastating loss of life for the boy's teachers and 22
classmates. He said, "Right now, I just don't see any kind of silver lining to
this. I don't see any, anything to smile about at this point."
He said the second grader was a good
kid, always friendly and always volunteering to help. He said, "Everybody liked
Ryan. Ryan was the first to offer to help somebody if they needed something, if
a pencil breaks in class and he's got a pencil there."
The elementary school has grief
counselors on hand to help students and parents cope with Ryan's death.
Meantime, Captain Riggs said he's
digging deeper into the case. He said, "I believe it's going to take a few days
for us to really get to where we need to be. We're gathering a lot of information
about not only the house but the dog itself."
A memorial fund has been set up for Ryan Maxwell. You can donate at F & M Bank in Galesburg. It's located at 21 E. Main Street.
