Alabama lady killed by pack of canines; owner charged with manslaughter

An worker of the Alabama Division of Public Well being was killed by a pack of canine within the northwestern part of the state last week as she was responding to a report about one other assault involving the same canine earlier in the week, the Franklin County Sheriff's Workplace stated Friday on Fb.

Jacqueline Summer time Beard was pronounced lifeless Friday by the Franklin County coroner after native residents referred to as the police to report a suspicious vehicle, the sheriff's office said. Officers found the automobile with Beard's physique inside it in a rural space exterior Purple Bay, near the Mississippi line, in response to the Fb submit.

Beard is believed to have been attempting to contact the canine's owner — whom the sheriff's workplace identified as Brandy Dowdy, 39 — when the canine killed her, the sheriff's office stated.

AL.com, the website of a number of Alabama newspapers, reported that Beard was a 58-year-old environmental supervisor and a longtime employee of the Public Health Division. It reported that on Friday morning, she was following up on an incident earlier within the week in which the dogs attacked a woman who was strolling. The lady stays hospitalized in Mississippi, AL.com reported.

When officers arrived on the scene, a number of canine began attacking the residents, inflicting one in all them to maintain minor accidents and a number of the dogs to be euthanized instantly, the sheriff's office mentioned. Officers then discovered Beard's body in the car, the sheriff's office mentioned.

Dowdy was charged with manslaughter and is being held without bail, public information show.

The Franklin County Sheriff's Office couldn't instantly be reached for remark.

The Public Well being Department didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.