A Pickaway County jury on Thursday convicted a mother and son of felony involuntary manslaughter after their two pit bulls killed their 73-year-old next door neighbor as she worked in her garden last fall.
Family members of Jo Ann Echelbarger wept in the front row of the courtroom as the verdicts were read aloud.
Susan Withers and her son, Adam Withers, stood quietly and didn’t show emotion as Pickaway County Common Pleas Court Judge Matthew Chafin read off guilty findings on all six counts. They were also convicted on charges related to Ohio’s dangerous dog laws.
The mother and son will return to jail and sentencing will be held later, said Chafin. Attorneys for the Withers said an appeal is expected.
The jury deliberated about six hours over two days after a three-day trial that featured emotional testimony, graphic police body camera footage and gruesome autopsy photos.
“We are just pleased that hopefully we’ve gotten some closure for the victims,” said Pickaway County Prosecutor Jayme Fountain.
The Withers lived with their pit bulls, Apollo and Echo, at a condo she owns on Kildow Court in the village of Ashville.
On Oct. 17, 2024, Apollo and Echo got out of the condo and fatally mauled Echelbarger, who lived next door with her husband, Stanley, 84. Echelbarger was working in a garden on a patio space between their two condos when the dogs attacked. Her husband, who uses a walker and wheelchair, witnessed the attack from the screened-in porch.
Prosecutors charged the Withers with violations of Ohio’s dog laws and felony involuntary manslaughter.
A year before Echelbarger’s death, another neighbor, Kimberlee Black, and her goldendoodle puppy, Nemo, were attacked by Apollo in the condo complex. Black suffered fractures and lacerations and had to put Nemo down due to injuries. Pickaway County Dog Warden Preston Schumacher then designated Apollo as a dangerous dog, which triggered additional requirements for the Withers.
The previous attack on Black and her puppy also set the groundwork for more serious charges being lodged against the Withers in the Echelbarger case.
Generally, violations of Ohio’s dog laws are misdemeanors, but the pet owners can face a fourth-degree felony for failing to control or confine a dog that has a documented history of dangerous or vicious behavior.
It’s rare but not precedent setting for prosecutors to seek involuntary manslaughter charges in fatal dog attacks. A grand jury in Hamilton County this week indicted Warren Houston on involuntary manslaughter and other felonies in the death of his 3-year-old daughter, Kingsley Wright. Dogs killed Wright in a Dec. 27 attack in Houston’s home in Cincinnati.
Dog owners in Ohio are liable for their pets’ actions. Owners of dangerous dogs must prove that the animals have been microchipped, spayed or neutered and vaccinated. The dogs must be kept in locked enclosures when the owners aren’t with them, and they must be muzzled and on a six-foot chain leash when walked.
A court may order the owner purchase liability insurance for a dangerous dog; extra insurance is required for owners of vicious dogs. The Circleville Municipal Court did not order the Withers to purchase liability insurance after Apollo attacked Black.
Cooper Elliott, the law firm representing the Echelbarger family, said a civil lawsuit will be filed to press for more accountability. The firm said: “For years, residents and neighbors sounded the alarm about these dangerous dogs. Yet, their concerns were ignored by those in power—the HOA and the dog warden—who had both the responsibility and the authority to take action. The failure to intervene cost Jo Ann Echelbarger her life. We demand accountability beyond this courtroom to prevent another senseless loss.”
Laura Bischoff is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.
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