Overview
- The attack occurred on May 19 when two pit‑bull mixes named Max and Mako escaped a neighbor’s yard and fatally mauled 50‑year‑old Jodi Cowan while she was walking her small dog late at night.
- Brevard County authorities say Cowan was taken to a trauma center and died hours after the attack, and a neighbor’s security camera captured graphic footage of the mauling.
- The dogs’ owner, Linda Cutler, was arrested on a manslaughter charge, is being held without bond and is due to appear in court on June 23.
- Animal services took Max and Mako into custody and they have been ordered to be euthanized, officials said.
- Neighbors had placed at least 14 calls about the animals since October 2024 and animal services issued citations after a prior bite that required medical treatment; officials say Florida law generally lets animals remain with owners unless a severe bite meets the statutory threshold for seizure, a limit that has prompted local calls for policy change.