Birmingham police provide update on Ensley dog attack investigation

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - Birmingham police say they are urging their animal control unit to set traps and catch the dogs responsible for killing 63-year-old Sharon Portis. Until they are captured, if you’re walking in the area or outside, you’re encouraged to carry a big stick or pepper spray just in case.

Almost a week has gone by and the dog or dogs responsible for killing 63-year-old Sharon Portis on 18th Street Ensley are still out there. According to officer Truman Fitzgerald, what happens next is getting BPD’s animal control unit involved. Right now it’s unclear if the dogs involved belong to anyone or are strays.

“We have not been able to identify the animals and we do consider them to be a danger to the public because they are still loose.”, said Fitzgerald. “We can set traps to trap stray dogs, in case they were a pack of stray dogs, we know we can set those traps and we can trap as many stray dogs in the area that we can.”

For Portis’ brother, Albert Ford, the last week has been rough. He says on top of trying to mourn his sister, he’s also trying to investigate her death. He says he is waiting by the phone for police to contact his family. For Portis family, the hope is they can focus only on honoring her memory.

“The size of this city and the resources they have available, I don’t understand. I just can’t fathom, and I’m just trying to realize what it is really going on.”, said Ford. “Someone should explain to us why this happened, and what have they done to make sure that this doesn’t happen to someone else.”

A candlelight vigil is scheduled for Portis Monday, November 20 at 5 p.m. on 18th Street Ensley where the attack happened.

Get news alerts in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store or subscribe to our email newsletter here.