An elderly Tennessee woman is dead after being mauled by six German shepherds, and now authorities could criminally charge the dogs’ owner in connection with the incident, WTVF-TV reports.
The dogs attacked Jill Peterson Tuesday evening behind her home as she was cleaning out a drainage ditch in Pall Mall, Tennessee, a rural community between Nashville and Knoxville near the Kentucky border.
“They dragged her down the yard and all of her clothes were off, her shoes, everything,” her sister, Nina Brown, told the television station. “They tore all of her hair out. The casket can’t be open. It’s like a nightmare. It’s hard to believe.”
Brown said she attempted to get her sister into their backyard after the attack, but that only made problems worse with the dogs. Three of the animals came after her. She then called 911, and Peterson was flown to a hospital but later died.
District Attorney Bryant Dunaway said criminal charges could be filed against the dogs’ owner.
“This is a very sad situation and takes you back when you think about the facts,” Dunaway said. “Possibilities of a homicide crime likened to criminal negligent homicide could be where we land.”
Brown expressed frustration with the owner of the dogs, which she said were known to cause trouble in the area but were not adequately secured for public safety.
The dogs were euthanized soon after the attack.
“The law had been out here several times,” said Brown, who added that prosecuting the owner won’t bring her sister back.
“Whatever [the owner] gets won’t be enough, I’m sorry, but that’s the way I feel. She knew the dogs were dangerous and didn’t do nothing about it,” Brown said of the owner.
A funeral for Peterson was held Saturday.
[Feature Photo: Jill Peterson/Brown Funeral Home]
