Arif Somjee

ASHLAND, Miss. — It’s clear Debra St. Charles loves her dog Madison. Now she’s fighting the city to keep her beloved pit bull mix.
“Maddy is just a big, goofy girl. She’s my goofy girl,” St. Charles said.

St. Charles said she’s had one-year-old Maddy since she was a puppy. Maddy was originally was set to be a bait dog, St. Charles said, so she took her in.

“I had all the intentions of just giving her a boost in life and getting rid of her, but Maddy saved me. I can’t let her go. I can’t. I’m fighting for her,” St. Charles said .

But owning a pit bull in the city of Ashland, Mississippi is against a city ordinance. An alderman said the ordinance has been in place for years.