According to Indiana officials, a Marion County Sheriff’s Office officer was slain while protecting her 8-year-old kid from a dog attack. The fatal incident occurred on Tuesday night at the house of Tamieka White, 46, according to the Indianapolis Star.
White, a sheriff’s deputy for over 17 years, was pronounced dead not long after Indianapolis police officers arrived to her home. The rabid dog is also believed to have attacked the deceased woman’s 8-year-old son. However, the minor’s injuries were not life-threatening.
“She died last night protecting the most important person in her life,” White’s commander at the Sheriff’s Office, Brittany Seligman, said after the fatal attack. One of the officers who responded to the scene shot and killed the attacking dog after it aggressively rushed toward them, Indianapolis police said.
White had been employed by the Marion County Sheriff’s Office’s Judicial Enforcement Division since 2007. According to the Indianapolis Star, the division is in responsible of transporting offenders to and from courts, as well as collecting overdue taxes and issuing legal process papers.
“Deputy White was a bright light to all that knew her,” Sheriff Kerry Forestal said in a statement. “We are immensely grateful for her nearly 17 years of service to our agency.”
According to an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department official, White was not the owner of the attacking dog, and the owner has since been located. Following the horrific event, the Indianapolis Animal Care Services reported the deceased attacking dog, as well as three other dogs and a cat, were seized from the home.