Jacqueline Summer Beard was trying to contact dog owner Brandy Dowdy on Sunday while investigating the dog attack reported to Franklin Animal Control. He never returned from the search and lawmakers responded to a report of a suspicious vehicle in the area around 6pm on Sunday, police said. When police arrived, the dogs also attacked several locals. According to police, one resident was slightly injured. There were seven dogs in all, County Sheriff Franklin Shannon Oliver told AL.com. Some of the dogs “died immediately,” the sheriff’s office said, although it was unclear how many. When police returned to the scene, they located Beard, who was found dead by Franklin County Medical Examiner. Beard was 58 years old and lived in Muscle Shoals, AL.com reported. He worked as an environmental supervisor for the Alabama Department of Public Health and was in the department for almost 17 years according to the ADPH. “Summer was known to her colleagues as a great person,” the department told AL.com. “It was a terrific team and it was loved by those who knew it.” Dowdy, 39, of Red Bay, was later arrested for manslaughter under the state Dangerous Dogs Act, according to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department. He was held in Franklin County Jail without bail, according to records. In the previous attack, Dowdy dogs attacked a woman walking on a freeway, according to WAYY. He was taken to a hospital in Tupelo, Mississippi, before being taken to a hospital in Jackson, Mississippi. Oliver told AL.com that her condition was “quite serious” and she remained in hospital.
