TULLAHOMA, Tenn. (WTVF) — A mother is charged with second-degree murder in the death of her 3-month-old daughter, nine months after a fatal dog attack in Tullahoma that claimed the lives of the baby and her grandfather.
Tullahoma Police arrested three people in connection with the December attack.
Zaccahae Smith, the baby's mother, is charged with second-degree murder.
Sylvia Smith, the baby's great-grandmother, is charged with three counts of child abuse and neglect.
Tilesia Baugh, the baby's aunt, is charged with two counts of child abuse and neglect and one count of aggravated child abuse and neglect.
The charges stem from a Dec. 3 attack at a home on East Warren Street. Fifty-year-old James Alexander Smith and his 3-month-old granddaughter were the only people home when the dogs attacked.
A family member later found the two and called 911. Smith was found dead holding a baseball bat, which investigators believe he had been using while trying to protect his granddaughter. The dogs killed the infant, while Smith died from health complications suffered while trying to save his granddaughter.
One of the seven dogs, described as a pit mix, was shot by officers at the scene. The other six were taken by animal control.
Detectives said seven children and seven dogs had been living in the home under what they described as horrible conditions. No other children were home at the time of the attack.
The home has since been condemned and torn down.
NewsChannel 5 has reached out to the district attorney's office for more information about what led to the charges.
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