CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio — A mother and her son each were sentenced Wednesday to a minimum of 14 years in prison after their dogs mauled an elderly woman as she was gardening, killing her.
Susan Withers, 62, and her son, Adam Withers, 35, both of Circleville, were sentenced by Pickaway County Common Pleas Court Judge Matthew Chafin to 14 to 19½ years in prison, the Columbus Dispatch reports. Both were convicted in February of multiple felony counts of involuntary manslaughter.
According to court records, police say Jo Ann Echelbarger, 73, was gardening outside her condominium on Oct. 17, 2024, when two dogs, reportedly breeds of pit bull, broke loose from a nearby home and attacked her. The Dispatch reports Echelbarger’s husband, who has dementia and Parkinson’s disease, witnessed the mauling from a screened-in porch.
Family members of Echelbarger said the dogs broke through a screen on a patio. Echelbarger was pronounced dead at OhioHealth Grant Medical Center in Columbus.
A court filing shows that police officers responding to the scene were attacked by the dogs. The filing says an officer shot one of the dogs at least five times, while the other dog was shot at least three times.
One of the dogs survived and ran away. It later attacked another dog near a middle school, then returned to the neighborhood where the initial attack occurred. It was shot and killed, WBNS Channel 10 reports.
“The way that she died, it was heinous. She was fully conscious. She was terrorized. She suffered and knew it the entire time,” Echelbarger’s son, Bill Rogers, said during Wednesday’s hearing, according to the Dispatch. “So, I’ll be quite straight with you: there is no hole deep or dark enough. There is no hell hot enough. There is no penalty harsh enough.”
WBNS reports the victim’s family has filed a lawsuit, saying county officials and a condo association were aware the dogs were dangerous and should have had the dogs removed.
Pickaway County Prosecutor Jayme Fountain tells the Dispatch the sentences for the Withers are the longest in state history for a dog attack and likely will be appealed.
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