Yes, God Forbid a parent teach their child that a neighbor's fenced in yard is NOT public territory and should be respected as a boundary. God forbid that the owners of the dog responsibly fenced in their yard to keep their dog from running loose. It's CLEARLY the dogs fault.
I live beside idiots like this. Idiots that despite how many times I've told to stay out of my yard, do not approach Hannah, that Hannah hates them, they STILL come into my yard. I have put myself in front of Hannah when the kids run up to her because I know that Hannah has no tolerance for these two children. I have told the parents. Yet, do you think those kids stay out of my yard? NO.
The dog is not always to blamed. Even the best trained dog is still an animal, and has a breaking point. Children are notorious for pushing buttons, pushing the boundaries. Why? Because they can, because they're "kids" and there are no consequences anymore because people are too scared (or too lazy) to discipline.
Often, these situations are complicated. Not always. A child who comes back time and time again to torment a dog, especially after warnings, simply deserves to be bitten. A parent who does not warn their child, especially after observing there is a problem, is a bad parent. An owner who doesn't train their dog to be patient, or to ignore mild provocation (admittedly, sometimes much easier said than done) or, as an alternative, does not keep their dog where it is hard for children to get to, is a bad owner.
We have so few details about this case, that it is hard to judge. We don't know if the dog had ever been a problem before. We don't know if the kid had been a problem before. We don't know what the parents did or did not do, and we don't know what the owner did or did not do.
Sometimes, more than one person is at fault. Sometimes no one is at fault. Sometimes you'll just get a headache trying to figure out who is at fault.
To be sure, the tendancy in some areas (not where I live, thankfully) to fail to teach children that property boundaries are nothing short of sacred is a huge problem. Of course, kids have, and always will, ignore that rule. But I will say I'm not pleased when no one makes the effort in the first place (and I simply scratch my head at neighborhoods that have banned fences of any kind because they "lower property values" . . . I just don't get it).
Kid's fault? Parent's fault? Owner's fault? Probably all of the above.
If this really was an ABPT, then it was illegal to have it in Austrailia. Unless the owner had it prior to the ban, then they were breaking the law when they got the dog. Although BSL is BS, the fact that someone broke the law to get this dog indicates that a) the breeder wasn't a gem of responsibility, and b) the owner wasn't either. That dog was in mortal danger from just existing, and thus should not have existed. This makes me inclined to think this is someone with little respect for the rules, little respect for their dog, and moreover, wanted a pit bull for the 'bad dog' image. So . . . probably not a great owner.
I've discussed the kid above.
I think the parents could well be at fault, I just dislike the kneejerk reaction to blame them.
Or it could be combination there of . . . inattentive parents who did not instruct their child well . . . . child who ignores what warnings he did have and the ditates of common sense, and who might well have been kicking at the dog . . . poorly socialized dog that spent far too much time in the yard, thanks to irresponsible owner.
But, that's speculation.
In your case, Shadowface, I sympathize . . . we have a lady with a Rottie down the street who had the same problem with a certain family.