EVERETT — It was not the end Diane Cowling likely envisioned.

At 65, the one-time Boeing worker was locked up in the Snohomish County Jail where she awaited sentencing on animal cruelty charges.

In the court of public opinion, she had been excoriated for letting more than two dozen ca

ts starve to death in the Granite Falls home she could no longer afford. In the court of law, animal rights advocates and prosecutors urged a stiff sentence.

Cowling died of a heart attack while behind bars Wednesday night. She was scheduled to be sentenced on Monday.

Attorney Cassie Trueblood learned of her client’s death Thursday morning.

“I just think it’s sad,” she said.

Cowling had been in jail since January. She had taken responsibility for what had happened to the animals in her care and was resigned to being punished, Trueblood said.

She was remorseful and although she clearly didn’t properly care for her cats and dogs, she did love them, her attorney said.

“I don’t think she intended any sort of harm. I don’t think she knew what she was doing,” Trueblood said. “I don’t think she was capable of saying ‘no’ to taking more animals.”

Animal rights advocates said Cowling fit the mold of an animal hoarder. They typically have a large number of pets and fail to provide even minimal standards of nutrition, sanitation, shelter and veterinary care. That neglect often results in animals’ illness and death from starvation, the spread of infectious disease, and untreated injuries or medical conditions.

“It’s just part of a tragic phenomenon in society,” said Lisa Franzetta, an Animal Legal Defense Fund spokeswoman in California. “Between the people and the animals, there are no winners.”

One study found that animal hoarders tend to be women and cats tend to be the most hoarded pets.

Cowling’s house in Granite Falls was in foreclosure when the dead animals were discovered Jan. 21 by a locksmith hired by the mortgage company. He called 911 after inhaling the stench and catching a glimpse of the deplorable scene inside. Police found three living cats in the house, which was filled with feces and animal carcasses.

By then, Cowling had moved to a Lake Stevens apartment. Police found her with a dog and two cats.

“The rate of recidivism for hoarders is close to 100 percent,” Franzetta said.

Prosecutors charged Diane Cowling and her son, Michael Cowling, 36, with being criminally negligent when they allowed more than two dozen cats starve to death.

Her son reported that he had tried to get his mother to give away the animals. He would clean up the house and then be away for work for days or weeks. When he returned the house was filthy again, according to court documents.

He’s now serving five months in jail.

A friend of Michael Cowling’s wrote a letter to the sentencing judge. The man indicated that Diane Cowling was living with mental illness. He’d witnessed animals defecate in the house and she seemed to see right through what happened, making no move to clean up after the animal. Her son tried to help but the situation grew out of his control, the man wrote.

The letter writer said that Michael Cowling tried to get assistance for this mother and was told that unless she was a danger to herself or anyone else, there wasn’t help for her.

Trueblood never found any records that indicated Diane Cowling had been diagnosed with a mental illness. But the attorney said it was apparent that mental illness contributed to her situation, along with complicated physical and financial problems.

Cowling had breast cancer. Her son also reported that his mother had diabetes, respiratory problems and a heart condition, according to court papers.

She had worked at Boeing for a long time but a Machinists strike caused her financial situation to worsen, Trueblood said.

By the time the animals were found “I think she lost her ability to cope with anything.” Trueblood said. “I think she was unjustifiably vilified. She was doing the best she knew how to do.”

Granite Falls Police Chief Dennis Taylor called Cowlings’ death a sad development and said his department’s sympathies go out to her family.

Pasado’s Safe Haven, a Snohomish County-based animal welfare organization, was involved in removing carcasses from the Granite Falls home and also caring for three animals that survived. They showed up at court hearings in the case, carrying signs with photographs from inside the home. They demanded stiff punishment and urged the court to prohibit Cowling from ever again owning animals.

“We were extremely saddened to learn of the passing of Diane Cowling this morning,” Pasado’s chief executive officer Matthew McNaughton said. “As we strive to be a voice for the animals, and fight to stop animal cruelty, we are also acutely aware of the worth of a human soul. We send our deepest sympathy to the family and friends of Diane Cowling.”

Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446, stevick@heraldnet.com.