Tanya Tucker Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Dog Assault on Neighbor

Defendant Found Guilty in 1998 Attack by Pit-Bull

Atlanta-Fulton County District Attorney Paul L. Howard, Jr. (Atlanta Judicial Circuit) announces that, following her conviction, Tanya Tucker (40) has been sentenced to five years (18 months of which are to be served in prison, with the balance probated) for a 6 October 1998 attack on a neighbor by her pet pit-bull terrier, Mystikal. Tucker was found guilty of one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Late on the night of the incident, Tucker and her dog encountered the victim, Darrell O'Neal (46), and his dog, a toy poodle named Woody, walking in the apartment complex where they lived at 500 Northside Circle in northwest Atlanta. The defendant's dog attacked the victim at Tucker's command, seriously injuring him. It is believed that the victim's prior complaints regarding the defendant's dog roaming loose in the complex are what motivated the assault.

Senior Assistant District Attorney Maura Krause prosecuted the case, Fulton County Animal Control Investigator Robert Smalley investigated, and Judge Bensonetta Tipton Lane presided.

CONTACT: Erik Friedly, 404-224-0560 (office); 404-533-1381 (pager)