Alabama girl killed by pack of canines; proprietor 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 final week as she was responding to a report about one other attack involving the identical dogs earlier within the week, the Franklin County Sheriff's Workplace stated Friday on Facebook.

Jacqueline Summer Beard was pronounced lifeless Friday by the Franklin County coroner after native residents called the police to report a suspicious car, the sheriff's office mentioned. Officers discovered the automobile with Beard's physique inside it in a rural area exterior Pink Bay, close to the Mississippi line, in response to the Fb submit.

Beard is believed to have been making an attempt to contact the canine's owner — whom the sheriff's office recognized as Brandy Dowdy, 39 — when the dogs killed her, the sheriff's office mentioned.

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

When officers arrived at the scene, a number of canines began attacking the residents, inflicting one among them to maintain minor accidents and some of the canines to be euthanized immediately, the sheriff's workplace stated. Officers then found Beard's physique in the automotive, the sheriff's office mentioned.

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

The Franklin County Sheriff's Workplace couldn't immediately be reached for remark.

The Public Well being Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.