Case Snapshot
Case ID: 10351
Classification: Neglect / Abandonment
Animal: horse, pig
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Attorneys/Judges
Prosecutor(s): Melissa Blanton
Judge(s): Jack Hammontree, Ronald Franklin


For more information about the Interactive Animal Cruelty Maps, see the map notes.



Thursday, Dec 14, 2006

County: Grant

Charges: Misdemeanor, Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted

Defendant/Suspect: George Wesley Gilchrist

Case Updates: 6 update(s) available

Six horses were seized on Dec 14 morning by Grant County Sheriff's Office deputies after the execution of a search warrant about nine miles north and four miles west of Medford.

The horses were taken to a location in Enid where they will remain until they can be transported to horse rescue shelter in Holdenville, a member of Enid Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said.

Lahoma veterinarian Kristy Krueger was examining the six horses that had been brought to Enid, saying "these six are the critical ones."

One other horse wasn't as lucky.

"We had to put one down this morning because it was so bad," Krueger said.

The horses were found in bare pasture, she said. All were malnourished and had mild worms.

"The main problem was just lack of food," Krueger said. "They should make it. All of these should be able to."

The six horses, ranging in age from 2 to 8 years old, were taken after the execution of a search warrant.

"It's been an ongoing investigation," said Grant County Deputy Jeremy Biggs. "Once the paperwork is completed it will be turned over to the district attorney."

No arrests have been made, and Biggs wouldn't say how many other horses were involved.

The horses will need bloodwork done before they are taken to the rescue shelter in Hughes County, Krueger said.


Case Updates

A 44-year-old Wakita man has been sentenced to two years in prison after he pleaded guilty in June to seven counts of animal cruelty.

Grant County Associate District Judge Jack Hammontree sentenced George Wesley Gilchrist in September. Gilchrist will serve three years of probation after the prison term.

Prosecutors say Gilchrist had about 34 horses on his property near Medford in December 2006. Assistant District Attorney Steven Young says that late that year, sheriff's deputies seized seven horses that appeared to be starving. Three later died.

The judge also requested the Gilchrist be sentenced to a year in a county jail on a bogus check charge for which Gilchrist had received a deferred sentence. The sentence would run concurrently with the sentence for the animal cruelty charges.
Source: Tulsa World - Sept 23, 2008
Update posted on Oct 6, 2008 - 1:05AM 
A Wakita man will be formally sentenced Sept. 23 after entering a blind plea to seven felony and two misdemeanor counts. George Wesley Gilchrist was set to stand trial in Grant County District Court on Monday on seven counts of cruelty to animals and two counts of leaving a carcass in a well, spring, pond or stream.

Gilchrist didn't make a deal with the state and a pre-sentence investigation will be conducted to determine if he's at risk of being a repeat offender, assistant district attorney Steven Young said.

According to an affidavit, Grant County sheriff's deputies discovered the carcasses of about 34 domestic animals and a number of other decaying carcasses and bones at Gilchrist's property near Medford in December 2006.

Two mules were found dead in the animals' only water source. Deputies also found two dead pigs and two other pig carcasses. Six horses were seized from the property, and several others were euthanized, authorities said.

Each animal cruelty count carries a punishment of up to five years in prison or one year in county jail and a fine of up to $500.

The misdemeanor counts are punishable by county jail terms of one year and/or up to a $500 fine.
Source: News OK - July 3, 2008
Update posted on Jul 3, 2008 - 10:03AM 
A Wakita man accused of cruelty to animals has been bound over for trial and will be arraigned on seven felony and two misdemeanor counts concerning the alleged abuse.

Meanwhile some of the animals he is accused of abusing are doing better now, according to a local veterinarian.

George Wesley Gilchrist will be arraigned in district court May 14 on seven felony counts of cruelty to animals and two misdemeanor counts of leaving a carcass in a well, spring, pond or stream.

Authorities said they found about 34 carcasses on Gilchrist's property nine miles north and four miles west of Medford. Six horses, four of which still are alive, were seized.

Grant County Assistant District Attorney Melissa Blanton presented three witnesses during Gilchrist's preliminary hearing Tuesday morning.

Tommy Farnsworth, who worked in the area and drove past one of Gilchrist's properties, testified to seeing unhealthy animals and poor conditions. Farnsworth, who grew up on a dairy farm, said he noticed horses and donkeys on Gilchrist's land were malnourished.

"Some were so skinny it was just a bag of bones with hide thrown over them," he told the court. "They were grossly skinny."

Farnsworth called the Grant County Sheriff's Office three or four times concerning the animals before authorities became involved, he testified.

"Every two or three days they were needing feed," he said.

Farnsworth said the day he first noticed the animals had hay was Dec. 5, 2006.

Gilchrist's attorney, David Williamson, asked Farnsworth if he had used binoculars to look at Gilchrist's land or taken pictures at either of the properties discussed during the hearing.

Farnsworth said he had and had sent some pictures to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. He said he had no ties to any animal rights groups.

"I'm just a concerned citizen," Farnsworth said.

Williamson asked Farnsworth about a protective ordered against Gilchrist in Alfalfa County.

"You've made some bold allegations in another county concerning Mr. Gilchrist," Williamson said.

Farnsworth said he'd been told by neighbors Gilchrist was "a dangerous man, a dirty man, and he will shoot you in the back."

He said, "It's enough to make me feel uncomfortable."

Grant County Sheriff's Deputy Jeremy Biggs and veterinarian Kristy Krueger both testified about the conditions of Gilchrist's land and animals when a search warrant was served at the properties Dec. 14.

Biggs said the animals were in varying states of healthiness, and when authorities searched the property there were three spots where hay had been.

"There was some feed in the barn, but it was partitioned off where nothing could get to it," he testified.

Biggs said veterinarians and members of Enid Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals took blood and fecal samples from the animals, as well as samples of hay.

Krueger said at the two pastures there was no food for the more than 65 animals.

"We didn't see any," she told the prosecutor about available food.

Krueger said one animal was euthanized on site and another later died after being seized from Gilchrist.

"They didn't have any body fat," she said of the animals. "They were skeletons and skin. All of them had worms."

Krueger explained to the court conditions shown in photos taken during the execution of the search warrant that were admitted as evidence.

She said most of the animals seized from the property are faring better, with the exception of one that still hasn't completely recovered.

Associate District Judge Jack Hammontree bound Gilchrist over for trial, saying enough probable cause and evidence had been shown during the hearing to warrant the case moving further along.

Williamson said he would object and wanted it noted there was testimony there was at least a minimal amount of food and water on Gilchrist's properties.

Gilchrist remains free on $9,000 bond and will appear before District Judge Ronald Franklin May 14 for arraignment.
Source: Enid News & Eagle - April 11, 2007
Update posted on Apr 11, 2007 - 10:35AM 
A Wakita man charged last week with seven felony and two misdemeanor crimes related to alleged abuse and neglect of mules and horses surrendered and was arraigned Thursday in Grant County District Court.

George Wesley Gilchrist, 43, was arraigned on seven felony counts of cruelty to animals and two misdemeanor counts of leaving a carcass in a well, spring, pond or stream. He also received applications to revoke and accelerate a suspended sentence.

Six malnourished horses were seized from Gilchrist's property, about nine miles north and four miles west of Medford. A mule was euthanized at the site, and two of the horses seized have been euthanized since.

The four remaining horses that were seized are still thin but are putting on weight and are "past the critical stage," Lahoma veterinarian Kristy Krueger said Thursday.

"The four we are still working on are doing great," she said.

One horse had needed assistance to stand, she said, but has been able to stand on its own now for a week.

"We discovered and seized six horses that had hip, backbone and ribs significantly protruding from their body," Grant Coun-ty Deputy Jeremy Biggs wrote in an affidavit. "The hors-es appeared to be in very poor and malnourished health conditions, and they were in (imminent) danger of death."

Grant County Sheriff's Office deputies found carcasses of about 34 domestic animals and a number of other decaying carcasses and bones, according to the affidavit.

The pasture where the animals were kept, "... had no grass or any kind of vegetation growing on the ground."

Two mules were found dead in the animals' only water source. Deputies also found two dead pigs and two other pig carcasses, according to the affidavit.

"We discovered one mule that was so sick and in pain it could not even stand up on its own feet in the pen with the other animals," Biggs wrote in the affidavit.

There were about 63 other surviving donkeys, cattle, pigs and sheep on the farm that were not seized because they did not appear to be in immediate danger of dying, authorities said.

Judge Jack Hammontree set $1,000 bond for each felony, including the applications, and $500 for each misdemeanor.

Prosecutor Melissa Blanton said Gilchrist has a 2005 felony bogus check conviction and was about a year into his suspended sentence when the animal cruelty charges were filed.

Gilchrist had been given until Thursday to surrender and is free on $9,000 bond. He is scheduled to appear in court again Jan. 16 for a bond appearance.
Source: Enid News - Dec 29, 2006
Update posted on Dec 29, 2006 - 12:33PM 
A Grant County man was charged with seven felony counts of animal cruelty on Dec 19, accused of starving horses and dumping more than 30 animal carcasses in a ravine on his farm.

George Wesley Gilchrist, 43, was charged with animal cruelty complaints after deputies searched his farm on Dec 14 and found seven malnourished horses. A mule on the man's property was so sick it had to be euthanized immediately, and one of the horses died on Dec 17 while in the care of a local veterinarian.

Gilchrist will have until Dec 21 to surrender to authorities, Grant County Sheriff Roland Hula said.

When deputies arrived at the farm northwest of Medford, they found two dead donkeys floating in a pool of water that was the only source of water for the surviving animals, according to an affidavit filed by deputy Jeremy Biggs.

Biggs said the animals appeared to have been placed there.

There also were two dead pigs and three dead cows in a pen, and two other animal carcasses lying in a dry pond.

In a ravine that runs into a creek on the farm, deputies found about 34 domestic animal carcasses and other decaying carcasses, and bones that appeared to have been dumped there, according to the affidavit.

"I don't know how anybody could do this," said Kristy Krueger, an Enid veterinarian who is caring for the surviving horses.

Krueger suspects the dead animals floating in the water died of starvation. There was no vegetation on the ground or other food to be found on the farm, she said, and the horses were eating sticks and dirt.

Krueger said she heard deputies found a large stockpile of other dead animals on the farm but couldn't bring herself to examine them.

"I didn't even go over there. I didn't want to see them," Krueger said.

Four of the horses are making a slow recovery at an Enid-area farm, but one appears to be too ill to save.

There were about 63 other surviving donkeys, cattle, pigs and sheep on the farm that were not seized because they didn't appear to be in immediate danger of dying, Hula said.

Prosecutors are seeking seven counts of animal cruelty against Gilchrist based on the horses that still were alive Thursday, said Melissa Blanton, assistant district attorney for Grant County. He also was charged with two misdemeanor counts of leaving a carcass in a well, pond or stream of water based on the two donkeys deputies found floating in the pond.

If convicted, Gilchrist could face up to five years in prison for the felony offenses and up to a year in prison for the misdemeanors. Each count against him also is punishable by a fine of up to $500, Blanton said.

Krueger said several people have inquired about the horses that were seized Thursday, but they are too sick to be adopted or moved to a horse sanctuary near Holdenville.
Source: News OK - Dec 20, 2006
Update posted on Dec 20, 2006 - 5:45PM 
One of the six horses found starving last week in rural Grant County has died.

The mare, which died Sunday, was found along with six others ranging in age from 2 to 8 years old. One of the horses was immediately put down by a veterinarian in the pasture where the horses were found, about nine miles north and four miles west of Medford.

No charges have been filed and no one has been arrested. An assistant district attorney for Grant County said she was hopeful there would be charges filed by this afternoon.

The horses are being cared for by a volunteer in rural Garfield County. Resources to care for the horses are scarce. The volunteer, who wishes to remain anonymous, said she secured blankets for each of the remaining horses. They are eating a lot of hay and drinking a lot of water.

The remains of the mare that died Sunday were taken to Oklahoma State University for a necropsy. Another mare has a cough and is in frail condition, the volunteer said. When not nursing from its mother, the young horse has to be hoisted up, otherwise she lays down.

"I don't know if she's going to make it ... ," the woman said.

Grant County Sheriff Roland Hula said paperwork has been prepared by deputies in the case and turned over to the district attorney's office.

Part of the investigation was turned over to the state Department of Environmental Quality after a number of carcasses turned up in "various places on the property." The DEQ is investigating whether water quality was compromised.

Tommy Farnsworth, who called in a tip to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals a few weeks ago, said he saw the horses drinking from water that contained the remains of two donkeys.

Anyone wishing to help offset expenses related to the care of the horses can donate to the Enid Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals at 1116 Overland Trail or call 233-1325.
Source: Enid News - Dec 19, 2006
Update posted on Dec 20, 2006 - 1:56PM 

References


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