MISSISSIPPI — Police in Mississippi say a woman opened fire on a puppy that had threatened children, but wound up shooting and killing her husband.

Witnesses tell police that the pit bull named “Cocaine” had lunged at some children and tried to attack them on Friday. The dead man’s son says the children were taken inside and his father picked the dog up.

It was then that police say Betty Walker fired twice, hitting the dog once and her husband once in the chest. Jackson police spokeswoman Colendula Green says the death of 53-year-old Robert Walker appears to have been accidental. She says a Hinds County grand jury will decide whether to charge Betty Walker.

Animal control officers have taken the dog, and its owner could face charges.

Pictured: Lazarius Montgomery And His Pitbull, Cocaine.