The murder of a rooster in a small city in Mississippi has sparked outrage, outpourings of adoration, promises of revenge, and murals in memory of the animal.
The bird, known as Carl, was a mainstay on the streets of Ocean Springs - a scenic city of 18,000 on Mississippi's Gulf coast.
He was known to strut about town, spinning a regular route that involved a morning stop at the local bagel shop, sips of water at a few coffee shops and even a visit to classes at the fitness center.
The rooster was personable and friendly, approaching people and posing for photographs, and nestling down for naps on regular railing perches throughout town.
But Carl was snatched from his perch before being killed by a female corrections officer and later dumped in a parking lot.
Carl the rooster (above, center) astride one of his favorite perches in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. His murder shook the coastal city which is still in mourning
Security footage implicated Kendra Shaffer, 35, a corrections officer at the ones County Juvenile Detention Center. She was filmed snatching Carl and dumping his body later
Carl was a common sight around downtown Ocean Springs. One of his favorite places to visit was the donut shop, where he would have some water and sometimes a bite to eat
Carl (left) was always ready to pose for photos with people (right). He readily approached anyone and everyone, and was a friend to all
'[Carl would] wake up and mosey around town and get a bagel at the bagel shop,' Matt Stebly, an Ocean Springs tattoo artist, whose parlor Carl called home, told the Washington Post, 'He had his rounds that he would visit every day.'
'He was iconic,' Stebly said, 'Larger than life.' But on a morning in late April, Carl the rooster's crow was heard never more.
Stebly arrived at his shop on April 25 and saw no sign of Carl. When the chicken didn't turn up for days the search was begun in earnest, and Stebly came across surveillance footage showing Carl being snatched from his perch at 3am on April 24 by a woman in the company of a gang of men.
The woman in the video was Kendra Shaffer, 35, a corrections officer at the Jones County Juvenile Detention Center - which is two hours away.
Footage from Biloxi, a city just west of Ocean Springs, showed Shaffer dumping Carl's dead body in a parking lot about 15 minutes after the attack.
Carl's
