Inspection Detail

Inspection: 309284420 - Judith Briscoe Dba Spotted Acres Petting Zoo

Inspection Information - Office: Fairview Heights Area Office

Investigation Summary

On February 1, 2006, the Assistant was a retired person who liked animals and who often helped the owner of the former Spotted Acres Petting Zoo with chores on her farm. Beyond their friendship, there was no employer/employee relationship between the two people. The corporation that had owned the Spotted Acres Petting Zoo was involuntarily dissolved on December 1, 2004, and the former wild animal exhibit and petting zoo was now owned by an individual. On February 1, 2006, the owner of the home where the animals were still kept discovered that one of her two black bears had escaped from its pen. Unable to reach her son, she called the Assistant to get the bear back into its pen. He used dog food to coax the bear down from the top of the owner's pickup truck, but when the bear got off the truck, it got on top of the Assistant and attacked him. The zoo's owner called emergency medical services, which communicated with the sheriff's office and medical personnel. A deputy arrived on the site along with the zoo owner's son, and EMT personnel arrived as well. The bear was still attacking the Assistant, when the deputy shot and killed it. The Assistant was taken to the local hospital. He was being transported to a regional trauma center in Evansville, Indiana, when he died en route from his injuries. During interviews, no proof on an employer/employee relationship was ever determined. The Spotted Acres Petting Zoo was out of business. No OSHA jurisdiction was established. The investigation was ended.

Keywords: AMUSE PARK/CARNIVAL, ANIMAL HANDLER, ANIMAL BITE