Son charged after mother killed by his pack of seven pit bulls

Sandra Miller died from her injuries a few days after the attack in October 2023

Police officers attempted to use pepper spray (Getty/iStockphoto)

A man in Utah is facing seven charges over the death of his mother after his pit bulls attacked and killed her in October last year.

Jeremy Miller, 38, was charged with seven counts of attack by animal earlier this week.

His mother, 63-year-old Sandra Miller, was left with multiple injuries to her hands, face and legs in the attack in Taylorsville on 31 October.

One of her legs had to be amputated, according to KSL News Radio, but she died a few days later.

When police officers first arrived on the scene, they tried using pepper spray to corral the seven dogs.

"The dogs were still extremely aggressive, and it took multiple Taylorsville City Police officers and animal control officers to keep the dogs away from the victim and contained in the yard," charging documents seen by Fox 13 read.

After the victim was taken to safety, officers tried approaching the dogs and the mother tried to escape from the group, the outlet reported. At this point, the dog was shot at least six times.

Mr Miller was then called and he arrived at the home around 20 minutes later.

"[He] was clearly upset about his fence being damaged and his dogs being taken by animal control," documents read.

The other six dogs were reportedly put down later on.

While Mr Miller was not at home at the time, the charging documents reportedly say that he was responsible for the dogs and therefore is liable for the offence.

Following Ms Miller’s death, her family thanked emergency services for doing all they could.

"Our family would like to thank the dispatcher for staying on the phone with our mother,” the statement given to Fox 13 read. “The police officers that didn’t hesitate to get to her as soon as possible.

“We’d also like to thank the paramedics, nurses, the doctors, the trauma team and everyone that helped our mother. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers."

The Independent has approached Taylorsville City Police Department for further comment.