Edward Daniels (right) listens to court proceedings after being found guilty of manslaughter. (The News Herald)
Jurors found a Florida man guilty of manslaughter after his dogs fatally mauled his 7-year-old neighbor, reports WCTV.
“We the jury find as follows as to the defendant, Edward Daniels, Jr., as to count one in this case. The defendant is guilty, guilty as charged, of manslaughter,” said a Bay County Courthouse clerk.
Tyler Jett died five days after he was attacked by two of Edward Daniels’ dogs last April in Pensacola. It took the jury two hours to find the dog owner guilty. Daniels was also charged with tampering with evidence after washing blood off one of the dogs when it returned home, but the jury found him not guilty of that offence. He said he had not realized what his dog had done until moments later.
“I felt bad,” Daniels said. “I was surprised by it. I didn’t think my dogs would do something like that.”
His neighbors, however, warned Daniels to keep his dogs contained so often that they said he should have known.
The dogs have been euthanized.
Daniels faces up to 15 years in prison. His next scheduled court appearance is on October 14.