A woman was mauled to death by a pack of dangerous dogs, police have confirmed.
Brandy Dowdy, 39, was arrested and charged with manslaughter under Alabama's dangerous dog law after authorities found the body of Jacqueline Summer Beard.
The health worker had been trying contact dog owner Dowdy to follow up on an attack earlier in the week by the same canines, the Mirror reports.
The initial incident had been reported to the Franklin County Animal Control in Alabama.
However, the 58-year-old never returned from making the enquiry, with deputies later called out on reports of a suspicious vehicle in the area at roughly 6pm local time on Sunday, police said.
When police arrived they found the dogs also reportedly attacked several residents in the area.
One had received minor injuries, police said.
There were seven dogs in total, Franklin County Sheriff Shannon Oliver AL.com reports.
Police said that some of the dogs were "euthanised immediately", but it is not clear how many.
Jacqueline's body was found nearby and she was pronounced dead by the county coroner.
She worked as an environmentalist supervisor for the Alabama Department of Public Health and had been with the department for nearly 17 years, according to the ADPH.
The department said in a statement: "Summer was known to her coworkers as an exceptional person.
"She was a tremendous team worker and was loved by those who knew her.”
Dowdy, 39, was later arrested for manslaughter under the state’s dangerous dog law, according to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department.
She was being held at the Franklin County Jail with no bail set, records show.
Under Emily’s Law, which was signed into law by Governor Kay Ivey in March 2018, owners of dangerous dogs can be sent to prison if their animals seriously injure or kill someone.
The law was named in honour of Emily Colvin, 24, who was mauled to death by dogs outside her home in Jackson County.
In the previous attack, Dowdy's dogs attacked a woman who was walking along the highway in Mississippi.
That woman's condition is "pretty serious” and she remains hospitalised.
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