Diane Emily Pellington
Hiwassee Dam – Investigators believe a 74-year-old Cross Creek Lane woman was on her way to check her mail when she was attacked and killed in a dog attack on Feb. 25.
The woman was found dead by sheriff’s deputies and three dogs – two pit bulls and a Great Pyrenees belonging to a neighbor – were seized and suspected in her death.
The victim was identified as Diane Emily Pellington, 74, who lived alone at a house on the 500 block of Cross Creek Lane. An autopsy concluded that she died as a result of the dog attack, while a lengthy process to examine DNA evidence will determine whether the dogs seized were involved in the death.
There have been no charges announced by the sheriff’s office so far.
911 records
The Cherokee Scout obtained dispatch records from the Cherokee County E-911 Communications.
According to those records, the family asked for a welfare check at 6:40 p.m. Feb. 25. The family had daily contact with Pellington and grew concerned when they couldn’t reach her.
The first deputy arrived on scene at 7:46 p.m. The deputy looked through windows and didn’t see anyone and was advised where he could find a spare key, or if that wasn’t there, given permission to break down the door.
At 7:40 p.m., dispatchers received a separate call about a possible dead body just down the road from Pellington’s residence.
The caller said a relative told him there was a body at the end of his driveway of an unknown gender, possibly male.
That call resulted in a large response that included multiple ranks within the sheriff’s office including the sheriff and chief deputy, along with the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation, N.C. Highway Patrol and District Attorney, as well as local fire departments.
First law enforcement to arrive reported, “body found, confirmed 9Bravo (code for dead body), does not appear to be natural causes.”
The remains were in such condition that deputies initially thought they were from a man and unrelated to the missing person nearby. A closer look over the next 10 minutes changed their mind, and by 8:30 p.m., they suspected the body was the missing woman’s.
Aw medical examiner was dispatched from Franklin by 8:40 p.m.
Law enforcement and investigators remained on scene throughout the night.
Working theory
Cherokee County Sheriff Chris Wood said he believes Pellington was checking her mail when she was attacked.
“She had a legal easement to be where she was. She was NOT trespassing,” Wood said.
An autopsy was conducted Friday at Atrium Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem.
Wood put it succinctly: “The manner of death determined at autopsy is ‘dog attack’,” he told the Cherokee Scout.
Later that week, investigators seized three dogs from a neighboring residence on Cross Creek Lane. The animals are being held in quarantine pending further investigation, which is ongoing.
“All the dogs involved in this tragic incident were known to live in the neighborhood and were on their owner’s property at the time of the attack,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement issued Monday.
The victim
Diane Emily Pellington had worked as a veterinarian assistant, according to her obituary.
“She loved anything concerning research and being outdoors. Diane was well organized very spiritual. She loved spending time with her family, especially her grandchildren and great grandchildren. Diane was a very loving grandmother, and everything was always about her grandbabies.”
She was preceded in death by a son and is survived by three sons and a daughter, numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
A private graveside service was held Monday. Townson Rose Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.