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

An employee of the Alabama Department of Public Well being was killed by a pack of canines within the northwestern a part of the state final week as she was responding to a report about one other assault involving the identical canine earlier in the week, the Franklin County Sheriff's Office stated Friday on Fb.

Jacqueline Summer season 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 automotive with Beard's body inside it in a rural area outside Red Bay, near the Mississippi line, in keeping with the Fb submit.

Beard is believed to have been trying to contact the dog's owner — whom the sheriff's office recognized as Brandy Dowdy, 39 — when the dogs killed her, the sheriff's office stated.

AL.com, the web site of several Alabama newspapers, reported that Beard was a 58-year-old environmental supervisor and a longtime employee of the Public Well being Department. It reported that on Friday morning, she was following up on an incident earlier within the week through which the canines attacked a girl who was strolling. The girl remains hospitalized in Mississippi, AL.com reported.

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

Dowdy was charged with manslaughter and is being held with out bail, public information present.

The Franklin County Sheriff's Office could not instantly be reached for remark.

The Public Health Division did not instantly respond to a request for comment.