Loyalty Scott: Major update after two Great Dane mastiffs maul six-year-old boy to death

Warning: Distressing content

A woman has been jailed after her more than 70kg dog fatally mauled a six-year-old boy in a brutal attack.

Loyalty Scott’s family has been waiting for the dog owner to be sentenced for more than two years.

He was dropped off by his grandmother at the home of Koko Miller, 57, in Portland, Oregon at about 6.45am on December 5, 2023.

Heartbreakingly, she did not know it would be the last moment she would spend with him.

Miller, who was described as a family friend who often babysat Loyalty, had agreed to look after Loyalty before school because the boy’s grandmother left for work early each morning.

Her two Great Dane mastiffs, Carlos and Lola, had both previously been aggressive toward the little boy before the day of the fatal attack. They were also known to fight with each other.

Prosecutor Chuck Mickley said that throughout the legal process, Miller blamed Loyalty for his own death.

The night before she was sentenced on April 24, Miller made a phone call from prison, a recording of which was played in the courtroom.

She complained about being “handcuffed” in court like a “murderer or something”.

“You tell a kid not to open a door, he opens the door, he gets mauled to death,” Miller said. “That’s my fault? No.”

On the day of the attack, Miller went into the garage to kennel Carlos and told Loyalty to stay inside the main part of the house.

The six-year-old opened the door and called out to Miller before Carlos launched the attack. Lola also began mauling the boy, while Miller tried to pull the large dogs away.

She told police that in an attempt to stop the attack she had grabbed a gun to shoot Carlos, but could not get a clear shot, OregonLive reported.

Miller called emergency services, telling them Loyalty had been mauled by her two dogs. Mr Mickley told the court the vicious attack lasted 20 minutes, while Miller said Carlos weighed about 72kg at the time of the attack. Lola weighed about 40kg.

Rena Scott, Loyalty’s grandmother cried as she spoke in court.

“I’m devastated, life will never be the same,” she said. “Loyalty was beautiful, he was smart, he was fun. He loved his family so much and wanted nothing but to see everyone smile.”

William Hoover, Miller’s husband, told police Carlos and Lola were not used to being with children and may have seen Loyalty as a “toy that runs”. Both dogs have since been euthanised.

Mr Mickley said it was deplorable that Miller still considers herself to be the victim.

“An amazing and precious child died because of defendant’s palpable, painfully obvious, and unconscionable criminal negligence,” Mickley wrote in court documents.

“From (Miller’s) very first call after Loyalty was mauled to death, where she blamed him for opening the wrong door, until (this week), defendant has failed to demonstrate even a scintilla of responsibility for her negligence. Even worse, defendant vitriolically considers herself to be the victim.”

Tributes to Loyalty remember him as a happy and loving child.

“Loyalty touched so many hearts. He always had a smile on his face and there was no way anyone could be in a bad mood around him,” his GoFundMe page reads.

“He loved everyone and everything. He was so pure and unaffected by the negatives in the world.”

Multnomah County Circuit Judge Celia Howes found Miller guilty of criminally negligent homicide and first-degree criminal mistreatment.

She was handed the maximum possible sentence of just over two years imprisonment.