Owner Charged With Involuntary Manslaughter After His Dogs Maul 7-Year-Old To Death

A South Carolina man was charged with involuntary manslaughter Monday for owning an animal involved in the death of a 7-year-old boy.

Marion County authorities arrested Lorenzo Cardenas on Monday in connection with an incident earlier this month in which a dog killed 7-year-old Shamar Jackson, Marion County Sheriff Brian Wallace said in a statement. Cardenas was charged with involuntary manslaughter and for owning a “dangerous animal” that “attacks and injures a human”, according to the statement.

Jackson, a first-grader, was a straight-A student, according to the Sheriff’s Department. A fund to help pay for funeral costs was set up at a local bank.

Jackson and his brother were walking on a road looking for their pet dog when they encountered a pack of dogs Sunday night, their father, Carnell Jackson, told The State. Shamar Jackson’s brother was able to escape, according to the Marion County Sheriff’s Department.

“I didn’t think I would come home and find my son dead,” Carnell Jackson told The State. “I was just thinking he went somewhere and hid or jumped in a tree.”

Six dogs were seized in the area around the attack following Jackson’s death, The State reported, though officials could not confirm if the dogs were involved in the attack.

Marion County Sheriff’s Department did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.