A Northern California mother was mauled to death by dogs on a walking trail where a pack of 25 Great Danes was running loose, authorities said.
The badly bitten body of Davina Corbin, 56, was discovered by a neighbor on Blackhawk Trail in Feather Falls just before 2 a.m. Thursday morning, the Butte County Sheriff’s Office said.
Corbin’s body had “numerous bite marks and injuries” and her clothing was covered in DNA matching domestic dogs. A medical examiner determined her cause of death was a domestic dog attack, according to the office.
She was found in front of a home on the trail where 25 Great Dane dogs were roaming around free, the sheriff said.
Investigators obtained a search warrant and “spent the entire day capturing” the loose pooches who were placed in the custody of Butte County Animal Control.
The DNA of the animals will be compared to the DNA collected on Corbin’s clothing and body to determine which dog or dogs attacked her, the sheriff’s office said.
Neighbors called Corbin’s untimely death a tragedy that was 100% preventable.
Max Heckler, who lives near the walking trail, said he and other neighbors have reported the unruly dogs to Butte County Animal Control on multiple occasions.
“Nothing’s been done about it until now,” he told local station KCRA. “Wait until somebody gets killed by those dogs. That’s a tragedy that should have never, ever have happened, ever.”
He said he narrowly escaped the large dogs once himself.
“The Great Danes, they come across the road here at me,” Heckler said. “I jumped in the car and left.”
He said animal control should have addressed the issue when they got the first call.
“What I’m saying is animal control is just as much at fault about that death as them dogs. They didn’t do anything about any of this,” he told the news station.
“That is what I’m mad about. That lady should have never died.”
Butte County Animal Control said it received two calls reporting loose dogs as well as concerns about the animals’ health and diet, but had no reports of aggression, according to KCRA.
Corbin lived close to the Blackhawk Trail and would often walk along it, according to residents. Investigators believe she was walking the trail when the dogs attacked her.
Her family has set up a fundraising page to help cover funeral costs.
“We’re struggling to come to terms with this loss and need help saying goodbye,” her son Justin Corbin wrote on the GoFundMe page.
No charges had been filed by Tuesday as the investigation is ongoing.
