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Unlicensed Port Huron Dog Owners To Be Charged After Fatal Mauling

PORT HURON (WWJ/AP) - Prosecutors are charging two Port Huron dog owners with having unlicensed dogs — two months after the dogs killed a 22-year-old woman.

The Times Herald of Port Huron reports that the 90-day misdemeanors against Andrew Miller and Jessica Johnson were authorized Wednesday. The charges also can carry $500 fines.

The pair has not been charged in the woman's death, outside their home in the 1700-block of 10th Street on Dec. 3.

Authorities said Rebecca Hardy climbed a fence where the pit bull and husky were kept and was pulled into the yard by the dogs.

Her death was ruled a suicide because authorities believe she knew the risk of climbing over a fence.

"...That clearly is a purposeful act," Oakland County Medical Examiner Ljubisa Dragovic said. "It's akin to someone jumping into a cage with tigers or lions at a zoo."

Tests showed Hardy was drunk and had used cocaine and marijuana at some point before the mauling, and Dragovic said there were also scars indicating a previous suicide attempt.

 

The two dogs and a puppy were later euthanized.

TM and © Copyright 2016 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2016 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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