Verified incident record · 2026-05-19

Jodi Cowan killed in Brevard County dog attack; owner charged

Investigators said two dogs escaped their yard and mauled Cowan while she walked her own dog; their owner later faced a manslaughter charge.

FatalPit bull mixes (local follow-up identification); some sheriff-attributed coverage used “large” or “mixed-breed dogs”Sharpes, FL

Date2026-05-19 · Early morning / just after midnight in local reporting

LocationBlue Bonnet Drive area in Sharpes near Cocoa; exact residence omitted by BiteDB

Victim(s)Jodi Cowan, 50

Dogs involved2 dogs, Max and Mako

Injury severityFatal

Breed attributionPit bull mixes (local follow-up identification); some sheriff-attributed coverage used “large” or “mixed-breed dogs”WFTV and WESH reported Max and Mako as pit bull mixes; other sheriff-attributed coverage described them more generally as large or mixed-breed dogs. BiteDB preserves the source-level variation rather than asserting genetic confirmation.

What the record currently shows

Incident summary

Brevard County investigators said two dogs escaped their owner’s yard and attacked 50-year-old Jodi Cowan while she was walking her own dog on Blue Bonnet Drive. Cowan tried to protect her dog and flee but was overwhelmed and pulled down. She died at a trauma center hours later. The owner, Linda Cutler, was arrested on a manslaughter charge. A special magistrate later ordered Max and Mako euthanized, subject to the criminal court’s evidence-preservation order.

Legal-status note

Owner Linda Cutler was charged with manslaughter and later pleaded not guilty. A Brevard County special magistrate ordered Max and Mako euthanized, while a criminal-court order delayed euthanasia to preserve evidence. Charges remain allegations until adjudicated.

Media & source coverage

Video, reporting and source material

BiteDB embeds media only when a source-hosted player is suitable for embedding. News photographs and footage remain with their publishers unless reuse rights are clear.

↗Original source mediaClickOrlando page carrying sheriff-released attack footagePublisher-hosted video/reporting; media remains with the source.

Source provenance

Primary record used by BiteDB

A Brevard County woman is facing a manslaughter charge after deputies say her two pit bulls fatally mauled a Cocoa womanLocal television reporting citing Brevard County Sheriff’s Office · Published 2026-05-28 · Accessed 2026-08-26

WFTV and ClickOrlando reported that Brevard County investigators attributed Cowan’s death to an attack by Max and Mako after the dogs escaped their yard. WFTV described the dogs as pit bull mixes; Cutler was arrested on a manslaughter charge.

Open original source ↗

Additional sources

Brevard County magistrate orders euthanasia for two dogs in fatal maulingLocal television administrative-hearing follow-up · 2026-08-12
Owner arrested after loose dogs maul Central Florida woman to death, sheriff saysLocal television reporting citing Brevard County Sheriff · 2026-05-27

Data-quality notes

What BiteDB does not infer

Breed is recorded only at the provenance level shown above. Missing injury details, dog history, ownership facts or circumstances remain unknown unless a reliable source establishes them. This record may be updated as police, animal-control, medical, court or follow-up reporting becomes available.