Free Republic

The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office has identified a man killed in a dog attack as 83-year-old Michael Downing. Downing was killed by his neighbor's dogs at about 4 p.m. Friday, officials said. The hole in the fence where witnesses said the dogs came through is now boarded up. Witnesses Mackenzie Partin and Eddie Edwards said Downing’s body may have been dragged into the dog’s yard because they saw his body on the other side of the fence. The Franklin Arms apartment community is mourning the loss of Downing, whom they described as a helpful neighbor and happy man. “He always had...

Apparently the only thing worse than promising a man will be eaten alive by an anaconda is for a man to not be eaten alive by an anaconda. Many viewers felt Discovery had pledged adventurer Paul Rosolie would be utterly consumed by an anaconda on his special Sunday night. After all, the show was called Eaten Alive and its official programming guide description told viewers that a man “enters the belly of an anaconda.”

AN elderly Hong Kong man is being treated in hospital after doctors found he was being eaten alive by maggots, health chiefs said today. They said the 67-year-old could have been gnawed to death by the parasites had he not been rushed into care. The grisly affliction is known as human myiasis, a rare disease that results from flies infesting wounds or sores. Usually a problem for older people who have trouble looking after themselves, the flies lay their eggs in fresh or weeping wounds and sometimes even in the mouth, nose and ears. The hatched larvae then feed from...

SPOTSYLVANIA, Va. -- A dog owner was convicted yesterday of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to three years in prison for allowing her pit bulls to run loose and fatally maul an 82-year-old woman. The conviction against Deanna Large, 37, of Partlow, marks the first time in Virginia that a dog owner has been convicted of manslaughter for the actions of a pet. Circuit Judge Ann Hunter Simpson has the option to reduce the sentence when Large is formally sentenced on Feb. 24, but she cannot increase it. Spotsylvania County Commonwealth's Attorney William F. Neely had asked for the maximum sentence...