Alabama girl 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 dogs in the northwestern part of the state last week as she was responding to a report about another assault involving the identical canines earlier within the week, the Franklin County Sheriff's Office mentioned Friday on Fb.

Jacqueline Summer season Beard was pronounced dead Friday by the Franklin County coroner after native residents referred to as the police to report a suspicious vehicle, the sheriff's office stated. Officers discovered the automobile with Beard's physique inside it in a rural area exterior Crimson Bay, close to the Mississippi line, in response to the Fb post.

Beard is believed to have been trying to contact the canine's owner — whom the sheriff's office recognized as Brandy Dowdy, 39 — when the canines 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 worker of the Public Health Department. It reported that on Friday morning, she was following up on an incident earlier within the week through which the dogs attacked a lady who was strolling. The woman stays hospitalized in Mississippi, AL.com reported.

When officers arrived at the scene, a number of canine started attacking the residents, inflicting one in all them to sustain minor accidents and a number of the dogs to be euthanized immediately, the sheriff's office mentioned. Officers then discovered Beard's physique within the automotive, the sheriff's office mentioned.

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

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

The Public Health Division didn't instantly reply to a request for comment.