Off The Record

BACK IN JANUARY, ANIMAL CONTROL took possession of three Laytonville horses on accusations that the animals had been mistreated. DA David Eyster said Monday he will not prosecute the owner. “Based on my review of the reports provided, I find there is insufficient evidence to proceed with prosecution. Without going into every single fact and evidentiary issue, I will note that there is at least a partial to full defense to the allegations of abuse provided by the ‘health limitations’ (also known as heart murmurs) of two of the three horses, as determined by the examining veterinarian. According to the vet, ‘older horses with heart murmurs are hard to keep weight on, and require extensive care.’ Additionally, the owner voluntarily signed over ownership of the three horses to Animal Control, a care and control decision made by the owner that shows that she was keeping the long term interests of the horses in mind in deciding what was best. Such decisions may be difficult for some people and, in this case, are circumstantial evidence showing a lack of general and/or special criminal intent.”