MS man convicted of manslaughter for dog attacks that left 2 dead to get new trial

Jimmie E. Gates | Mississippi Clarion Ledger

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Two men were attacked six weeks apart in 2014 in Benton County.

Eric "Pinky" Hodges, owner the pit bulls, was convicted.

The Court of Appeals says the state proved its case, but cited faulty jury instruction.

His pit bulls killed two people in separate incidents in less than three months in 2014 in Benton County. A jury convicted him of two counts of manslaughter for his dogs' actions four years later.

However, a Mississippi Court of Appeals' opinion Tuesday threw out Eric "Pinky" Hodges' convictions, citing a faulty jury instruction, and ordered a new trial. The appeals court, however, didn't absolve Hodges, 40, of blame for the attacks.

"We find that had the jury been properly instructed, the state offered sufficient

evidence to support the manslaughter verdicts...," Judge Virginia Carlton wrote in the 23-page opinion.

One man mauled to death; six weeks later, another man was attacked, died next day

On July 4, 2014, Derrick Sanders was found dead on Mississippi 7 highway in Benton County.

His body was found about 60 yards from Hodges’ home but not on Hodges’ property. His body had been mauled and certain body parts were missing.

Some six weeks later, on Sept. 20, 2014, David Glass was found in an area

just yards from where Sanders’ body had been found. Glass was still alive, but one ear had been chewed off, and “large chunks of meat” were missing from his body.

Glass told authorities he was attacked by dogs coming down Sexton Road. He said he didn't know for sure who the dogs belonged to but believed they were Hodges' dogs.

Glass died the next day from his injuries.

In a rare case involving death by animals, Hodges, the owner of six pit bulls, was charged with two counts of manslaughter relating to Mississippi's law of ownership of dangerous animals.

In 2018, a Benton County Circuit Court jury found Hodges guilty on both

counts. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison with five years suspended and 15 years to serve, on each count. The sentences were to run concurrently, meaning at the same time, with credit for time served. Hodges also was placed on five years’ post-release supervision.

The Court of Appeals' decision to order a new trial for Hodges was unanimous. It said the jury wasn't instructed that Hodges had to have notice of his dogs’ vicious propensity.

Sister of one victim testified about dogs during trial

Sharon Reader, Glass’s sister and Hodges’ neighbor, testified for the state at Hodges' trial.

Reader said that about 2½ weeks before her brother's death, she spoke to

Hodges’ wife, Mary Ann, about concerns she had regarding the dogs and asked her to relay those concerns to Hodges. Reader testified that Hodges’ dogs would come up the road to her driveway and she asked that they keep the dogs tied up because she was afraid they were going to attack her grandchildren.

Hodges didn't testify at his trial, but his defense called seven witnesses who

testified the dogs weren't aggressive.

The dogs were euthanized by a judge's order.

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Contact Jimmie E. Gates at 601-961-7212 or jgates@gannett.com. Follow @jgatesnews on Twitter.