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'Ludicrous': Activist calls on sheriff to drop charges against man in deadly dog attack

Civil rights activist John Barnett is fighting to remove Chantell Ross' charges, promising video evidence proving his innocence.

CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, S.C. — A prominent civil rights activist claims he has evidence that will prove a Chesterfield County man shouldn't be held criminally responsible after a man was found dead in 2022. 

Chantell Ross was charged with involuntary manslaughter and three counts of vicious unleashed animals in connection with the death of Scottie Brigman, whose body was found on a dirt road just off Bailey Saw Mill Road in May 2022. Ross was the owner of four dogs that were surrounding Brigman's body, deputies said. 

Investigators claimed that Brigman's clothes were shredded by the animals and that his body was covered in bites. Ross reached out to John C. Barnett, a well-known civil rights activist, to help with his case in August. Two years later, Ross and Barnett say the case is still pending and claimed they have new evidence that will exonerate Ross. 

According to a press release from Barnett, the group's goal is to encourage law enforcement officials to drop all charges against Ross based on Brigman's autopsy and an alleged "exclusive" video. 

"Mr. Ross is a husband and a father and to think that he would kill a man and then leave him a quarter-mile from his property is ludicrous," Barnett said. 

The Chesterfield County Sheriff's Office hasn't yet responded to WCNC Charlotte's request for more information on the case. 

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