BY ELI WITEK AND SARA WARD

According to the Volusia Sheriff’s Office, an encounter between a pair of loose dogs and an eight-year-old boy led to tragedy just before 5 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 13, near Airport Road off of 15A in DeLand. 

Despite lifesaving efforts by witnesses who called 911 and performed CPR, Michael Millett, of DeLand, did not survive, the Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. 

Volusia County Animal Services captured both animals, who are currently held in quarantine. 

They have not received permission from the owner, Amanda Franco, for humane euthanasia.

Millett was riding his bike with a friend around the neighborhood of Berry’s Ridge subdivision when they stopped to pet a pair of dogs. 

The friendly encounter quickly turned violent, Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood said at a press conference Jan. 15.

Twelve bite wounds are being examined by the Volusia County Medical Examiner and a “dog bite related fatality expert,” Chitwood said. The bites have also been swabbed for DNA evidence.

Deputies chased the dogs back to their owner’s property, according to Volusia County Animal Services Director Angela Miedema. The owner, Franco, was not home, the Sheriff’s Office said. 

“This is a tragedy beyond comprehension, especially for those of us who are parents and grandparents,” Chitwood said. “I can only ask our community to say a prayer of strength for this family and keep them in your hearts as they face their worst nightmare.”

The goal now is to charge the owner with negligent homicide, the sheriff said.

Records show the owner has prior drug-related charges. According to Miedema, the dogs have been known to run free around the area, although no calls were made specifically to the Sheriff’s Office or Animal Services. One dog was a Catahoula breed — the other, a pit bull terrier mix.

“Pet ownership is an enormous responsibility and something that we continue to work and educate on at Animal Services,” Miedema said. “You have a lot of responsibilities as a dog owner to keep your animal confined to your property and ensure the public safety, as well as assure things like socialization and training to make sure that this animal is not a threat to anybody else.”

“We are going to do everything humanly possible to hold the owner of these dogs responsible, and we’re going to do everything possible to make sure that these animals are destroyed,” Chitwood added.

Original post: According to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office, an encounter between a pair of loose dogs and an eight-year-old boy led to tragedy just before 5 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 13 near Airport Road off of 15-A in DeLand. 

Despite life-saving efforts by witnesses who called 911 and performed CPR, the boy did not survive, the Sheriff’s Office said.   

Volusia County Animal Services captured both animals who are currently held in quarantine. 

“This is a tragedy beyond comprehension, especially for those of us who are parents and grandparents,” Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood said. “I can only ask our community to say a prayer of strength for this family and keep them in your hearts as they face their worst nightmare.”

Further details have not been released by the Sheriff’s Office.