Woman Whose Dogs Killed Diane Whipple Denied Parole Again
San Francisco, CA – Marjorie Knoller, whose dogs fatally mauled St. Mary’s College lacrosse teacher Diane Whipple in 2001, has been denied parole for the third time. Knoller will not be eligible for another hearing until she is 73.
The tragic attack occurred on January 26, 2001, at 2398 Pacific Avenue, just days before Whipple’s 34th birthday. She was returning from the grocery store when two Presa Canario dogs, owned by Knoller and her partner Robert Noel, attacked her. Whipple sustained severe injuries covering nearly her entire body and later died.
The case drew national attention not only for the brutality of the attack but also for the unusual circumstances surrounding the dogs’ ownership. Knoller and Noel were caring for the animals on behalf of a client in the Aryan Brotherhood and were later accused of selling attack dogs to drug dealers.
Knoller, who was present during the attack and failed to call 911, was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 15 years to life. Noel, who was not present during the mauling, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and died in 2018.
At her most recent parole hearing, Whipple’s longtime partner, Sharon Smith, spoke, urging that Knoller remain incarcerated.