Greenville woman says dog attack, racial slurs left her traumatized

GREENVILLE, N.C. (WITN) - A 78-year-old Greenville woman said she was attacked by a man’s dog and subjected to racial slurs during the encounter, which she described as the most traumatizing experience of her life. Greenville police said they are investigating the case.

Phyllis Barrett said she was walking her dog near Legacy at Fire Tower Apartments on Thursday when a man playing fetch with his German shepherd nearby allowed the dog to run over and attack both her and her chihuahua, injuring both.

Barrett said she begged the man to stop his dog, but said he laughed and threatened to kill her if she hit his dog. She said the man screamed racial slurs at her throughout the encounter.

“The incident was the most traumatizing thing I have ever been through,” Barrett said.

Barrett said she sustained injuries to her wrist and the left side of her body during the attack. Her dog limped for days but has since recovered, she said.

Barrett said the man did not call his dog off until a woman who witnessed the encounter walked by.

“I lived through the 60’s. I was part of the hate crimes that went on during then. I thought in the year 2026 that this would never happen,” Barrett said.

Jarvis Pridgen, a longtime friend of Barrett’s who graduated high school with her, said he was shocked by the alleged behavior.

“In this time and age, for people to be calling out names at you and using the ‘n word’... it’s totally unnecessary,” Pridgen said.

Barrett asked management at Legacy at Fire Tower Apartments to call police. She said management called the non-emergency line. During the first call, Barrett said she did not need an ambulance. On a second call, she said she asked the manager to request one.

Greenville police initially said an ambulance was not sent because Barrett did not want EMS. After being asked about the second call made by Legacy staff in which Barrett said she did need an ambulance, Greenville police said they had since been made aware of that call and are investigating the entire situation.

According to Barrett, Animal Protective Services arrived at the scene, but Barrett said an ambulance never showed up. She said she made clear to the APS officer that she was injured. Police told WITN there were no visible injuries to Barrett or her dog. Barrett disputed that account.

When asked why she did not call 911 herself, Barrett said it was because she was in shock and was too traumatized by the situation.

Barrett said she wants the man held accountable.

“To this day, right now, I’m sitting here trembling, thinking about what happened. My dog is 11 years old,” Barrett said.

WITN reached out to Legacy at Fire Tower Apartments for comment. The station has not received a response as of this story.