The arrest follows the fatal May attack that killed Jodi Cowan in Cocoa.
BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — The longtime partner of a woman killed by a neighbor’s dogs has been arrested after three dogs were found dead inside a trailer in Cocoa, authorities said.
Donnell Elliott Smith, 47, was taken into custody after Brevard County deputies and animal services investigators said they found the decomposing remains of three dogs inside a camper trailer. The case comes less than a month after Smith’s partner, Jodi Cowan, 50, died from injuries suffered in a dog attack near her home.
The new investigation began June 11, when authorities received a tip about a strong odor coming from the trailer on Blue Bonnet Drive in Cocoa, according to the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. Investigators said the animals had been left inside without food, water, ventilation or air conditioning. Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey said the case added another loss to a chain of events that began with Cowan’s death. “Folks, it doesn’t get any sadder than this,” Ivey said in a public statement. He said the deaths came down to people not caring for animals they were responsible for.
Deputies said Smith initially told investigators the odor was from a dog that had died and been buried. Authorities said the investigation later showed that three dogs had been kept in the trailer after Cowan’s death. Investigators said Smith had been responsible for the animals and had stopped checking on them. Their remains were removed from the trailer and sent for necropsies to determine exact causes of death. Officials said the animals appeared to have died after being left in extreme heat and without basic care. A fourth dog survived, authorities said. Ivey said that dog was the small dog Cowan had been trying to protect when she was attacked.
Cowan was killed May 19 after two loose dogs attacked her while she was walking a dog in her Cocoa neighborhood, authorities said. Investigators have said the dogs belonged to her neighbor, Linda Cutler, 29. Smith later described finding Cowan badly injured and trying to fight the dogs away with a knife while calling for help. Cowan was taken to a hospital and died from her injuries. The attack drew wide attention in Brevard County because officials said the dogs had a known history of trouble, including earlier complaints and at least one previous bite report.
Cutler was arrested after the fatal attack and charged with manslaughter. Authorities said her two dogs are expected to be euthanized. Investigators have said Cutler failed to keep the animals secured before the attack on Cowan. The sheriff’s office has described the case as one built around a pattern of unsafe animal ownership, first with the dogs that killed Cowan and then with the dogs found dead in the trailer she had shared with Smith. Officials have not said whether the two cases will be joined in court, but both remain active in Brevard County.
Smith faces felony animal cruelty and related animal neglect charges. Authorities said the charges include accusations that the dogs were confined without enough food, water or air. Some reports also list counts tied to the disposal of dead animals. Smith was booked into the Brevard County Jail on a $15,000 bond. Investigators said additional charges could be possible as they wait for necropsy results and finish reviewing the conditions inside the camper. Court records listed an initial appearance after his arrest, and the case will move through the county court system while prosecutors review the evidence.
The arrest changed the public view of Smith, who had first appeared in the case as Cowan’s grieving partner and as a witness to the fatal attack. He had described Cowan as the woman he loved for decades and said the attack left him with images he could not forget. Friends and neighbors had described Cowan as an animal lover. The discovery of the dead dogs brought a new wave of grief to the same property, where investigators said flies and the smell of decomposition led them to the trailer. Ivey said the deaths showed how one tragedy had continued to spread through the community.
The investigation into the dogs found dead in the trailer remains open, with necropsy results still pending. Cutler’s manslaughter case in Cowan’s death also remains active, with further court action expected in Brevard County.
Author note: Last updated June 17, 2026.