Pack of pit bulls mauls, kills man in SoCal desert driveway

SFGate

Phelan, CA (AP) - A man was mauled to death by a pack of pit bulls outside a suspected methamphetamine lab in the driveway of a Mojave Desert home.

Shawn Lee McCafferty, 27, was attacked June 7 on Sandstone Drive by up to eight pit bulls, the San Bernardino County coroner's office and sheriff's investigators confirmed Monday.

McCafferty's girlfriend Lacy Gidney reported the mauling. She was also attacked by the dogs but she managed to climb a fence and get away.

"Initially there were no known witnesses to tell the first responding deputies or our homicide investigators that these dogs were involved in any way. They found this victim with severe trauma to his upper body and began the investigation as a homicide," sheriff's spokeswoman Cindy Beavers said.

County Animal Control officers and sheriff's deputies returned to the home on Friday to impound the eight pit bulls, animal control spokeswoman Jennifer Pennell said. The fate of the pit bulls hasn't been determined.

While rounding up the dogs, a suspected drug lab was discovered and property owner Pam McKee, 52, was arrested and booked for investigation of being under the influence of a controlled substance, Beavers said.

McKee was issued a citation and released after booking.

Jereme Miller, 78, was also arrested for possession of a controlled substance and he was released from custody on Saturday, Beavers said.

An investigation was continuing and no other details were available.

McCafferty and Gidney lived on the property, some 80 miles northeast of Los Angeles near Victorville, along with several other people, Beavers said.