Overview
- On May 19 a neighbor’s security camera captured two pit‑bull mixes attacking 50‑year‑old Jodi Cowan as she walked her small dog and she died hours later at a trauma center.
- The dogs, identified as Max and Mako, belonged to neighbor Linda Cutler and had a documented history of escaping and aggression, with animal services and the sheriff’s office receiving at least 14 calls about the animals since October 2024.
- Investigators say Cutler knew the dogs had bitten a person who needed medical care and that she took minimal steps to restrain them despite multiple citations from Brevard County Animal Services.
- Cutler was arrested days after the killing, was evaluated by hospital staff after saying she had a heart attack during custody, and is being held without bond as criminal proceedings move forward.
- Brevard County is holding the dogs in quarantine and has ordered them euthanized, and officials say the limits of state law on seizure powers could prompt renewed review of local animal‑control authority.