Dogs kill 76-year-old woman left alone with them, Colorado cops say. Daughter charged

A woman has been arrested after Colorado sheriff’s officials say her dogs mauled her 76-year-old mother to death in February.

Jessica Hoff, 47, faces charges of criminal negligence resulting in the death of an at-risk adult and 54 counts of aggravated cruelty to animals, the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office said in a Friday, March 21, news release.

Deputies responding to a report of an unconscious woman found her mother, LaVonne Hoff, 76, dead in her Colorado City home after a dog attack on Feb. 3, sheriff’s officials said.

They found several dogs running loose in the home and two dozen more in dog crates, plus seven birds, officials said.

An investigation showed Jessica Hoff had left her mother, who had dementia and required 24-hour care, alone with the dogs to run errands, deputies said.

Investigators also found more dogs at a second property owned by Jessica Hoff in Colorado City, deputies said. In all, they found 54 dogs and seven birds living in unsanitary conditions.

Animal control officers seized the birds and dogs, several of which were in poor health, deputies said.

Colorado City is about a 140-mile drive south from Denver.

This story was originally published March 23, 2025 at 2:47 PM with the headline "Dogs kill 76-year-old woman left alone with them, Colorado cops say. Daughter charged."