Jacksonville Dog Owner Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Manslaughter in 2024 Ricker Road Mauling Death

A Jacksonville man whose dogs killed a veteran on Jacksonville's Westside in 2024 has been sentenced to six years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter, closing a case that took nearly two years to produce an arrest.

Melvyn Souffrount, 63, pleaded guilty on Oct. 21 to manslaughter in the death of Ronald Edward Coffman Sr., First Coast News reported. The Sheriff's Office gave Coffman's age as 59 when it announced the arrest in May; First Coast News described him as a 60-year-old veteran. He received six years in prison with credit for 155 days already served. The court also reserved jurisdiction to decide on possible restitution within 60 days of sentencing, according to the station.

The night of the attack

In the early morning hours of Aug. 31, 2024, Souffrount called police to his home on Ricker Road after finding a dead man along the roadway, according to the arrest warrant as described by First Coast News. The warrant described Coffman as having "countless injuries from head to toe," injuries severe enough that his face could not be identified.

Officers found Coffman suffering from multiple dog bites, and he died from his injuries, the Sheriff's Office said in May. The medical examiner ruled the death accidental, caused by an animal attack. Investigators later concluded that dogs from Souffrount's property had gotten loose and killed Coffman.

Repeated warnings before the death

The case against Souffrount rested heavily on what authorities say he had been told before that night. According to his arrest report, Jacksonville's Animal Care and Protective Services and the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office warned him multiple times about dogs escaping his property and attacking people.

One complaint came on July 13, 2024, less than two months before Coffman died. Officers were flagged down by passersby who saw dogs attacking a woman walking on Ricker Road, First Coast News reported. While responding, officers watched dogs escape from Souffrount's property by jumping over a gate. The woman later told investigators she had been attacked by seven dogs and bitten on her legs.

When it announced the arrest, the Sheriff's Office said that following a lengthy investigation, it had determined that Souffrount's "multiple and repeated negligent actions and failure to act, led to the victim's death."

A nearly two-year investigation

Souffrount was not arrested until May 2026, about 21 months after Coffman was found. A warrant charging him with manslaughter was issued Monday, May 18, and he was booked into the Duval County Jail that night, the Sheriff's Office said when it announced the arrest the next day, according to Action News Jax and News4JAX. Five months later, he entered his guilty plea rather than going to trial. The case was handled in Duval County circuit court, where felonies are prosecuted by the State Attorney's Office for Florida's Fourth Judicial Circuit.

Under Florida law, manslaughter is a second-degree felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison. Florida's manslaughter statute covers deaths caused by culpable negligence and does not require proof that a defendant intended to kill, which is how the Sheriff's Office framed its case: repeated warnings, followed by a failure to act.

A second person charged

Souffrount was not the only person charged in connection with the death investigation. During a follow-up search warrant at the Ricker Road property, the property's other resident, Mary Irene Smith, told police she had taken items from the scene before officers arrived, according to First Coast News.

That led detectives to a box on the property containing the victim's wallet and shredded clothing. His cell phone was found buried in the dirt where his body had been. Smith also confirmed there had been complaints about the dogs being aggressive and said she had examined the body with Souffrount and panicked, the station reported.

Eight pit bulls were found on the property. Smith agreed to surrender them to Animal Care and Protective Services, and they were euthanized. Smith was charged in January 2025 with tampering with evidence and is awaiting sentencing, according to First Coast News.

How Florida's dangerous-dog law has changed

Coffman's death came the year before Florida lawmakers rewrote the state's dangerous-dog statute. The Pam Rock Act, House Bill 593, passed the Legislature in 2025, was signed into law as Chapter 2025-61 and took effect July 1, 2025. Because it took effect after the Ricker Road attack, it did not govern this case.

The law is named for Pamela Jane Rock, a 61-year-old U.S. Postal Service carrier who died in August 2022 after five dogs attacked her on her route in Interlachen Lake Estates in Putnam County. Under the enrolled bill, the law:

• Requires, rather than merely allows, animal control to immediately confiscate and hold a dog under a dangerous-dog investigation that has killed a person or bitten someone with a certain severity
• Requires owners of dogs classified as dangerous to carry at least $100,000 in liability insurance and to register the dog annually
• Requires shelters and certain animal control agencies to give potential adopters specified information about a dog
• Raises the penalty for an owner whose previously declared dangerous dog causes severe injury or death to a person from a third-degree felony to a second-degree felony
• Raises the penalty for an owner whose unclassified dog causes severe injury or death, when the owner knew of the dog's dangerous propensities and showed reckless disregard, from a second-degree misdemeanor to a first-degree misdemeanor

The upgraded felony applies only when a dog has already been formally declared dangerous. For an owner whose dog was never classified, the most serious charge under the dog statute is now a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail. The general manslaughter statute, the charge prosecutors brought in Coffman's death, carries a maximum of 15 years.

What's next

The court has 60 days from sentencing to decide whether Souffrount must pay restitution to Coffman's family. Smith's sentencing on the evidence-tampering charge is still pending, according to First Coast News.

Jacksonville residents can report loose or aggressive dogs to Animal Care and Protective Services through the city's 630-CITY line.