Three horses shot to death, one shot over 50 times - Breaks, VA

Thursday, Jan 25, 2007

County: Dickenson

Charges: Misdemeanor, Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted

Defendants/Suspects:
» Michael Damron
» Jacob Leslie Ratliff

Case Updates: 6 update(s) available

Two Eastern Kentucky teenagers were in jail on Jan 31, accused of killing three horses and wounding several more of the animals, which are used for trail rides at a park on the Kentucky-Virginia state line.

Police told the Lexington Herald-Leader on Jan 31 that one of the dead horses was shot more than 50 times and that the suspects chased the horses for about seven miles after the shooting began.

The horses were grazing on a strip mine when the 17-year-old boys started shooting at them on the afternoon of Jan. 25, Pike County Chief Deputy Sheriff Melvin Sayers said. One of the boys turned 18 three days later.

Trish Hayes of Virginia owns the animals and Breaks Stable in Breaks, Va. They are used for rides at Breaks Interstate Park. She said she hoped the boys would be prosecuted as adults.

The boys were charged with criminal mischief and cruelty to animals and were being held in the Breathitt County Juvenile Detention Center. A hearing was scheduled for todayin Pike County.

The teens told Sayers and Detective Richard Ray that they drove to the site to shoot rabbits.

"But one of the juveniles jumped out and said, 'I don't like these horses,'" Sayers told the newspaper, "and they just went to shooting horses."

The other horses fled, but the boys apparently went back to their truck and chased the horses across the strip mine, officials said.

Drugs might have been involved, Sayers said.

"They said they took a couple of pills, but didn't know what kind," he said. "But one of these kids had a 3.4 grade-point average, so you're not dealing with little dummies."

Area residents identified both the suspects and the truck, Sayers said.

Ray said one of the suspects said he had once been injured by a horse and disliked the animals.

The boys told police they had two .22-caliber rifles and a .22-caliber pistol. One of the horses was shot six times but survived, Hayes said.

She said she released most of the horses on the mountaintop strip mine next to her father's home in October after the riding season ended.

The horses rarely strayed from the strip mine even though there are no fences, Hayes said.

"You've got miles and miles of flat land where these horses graze and just stay," she said.

"When they're up there, they look like a band of wild horses, but when you drive up, they'll come right up to your window."

Case Updates

Two teens convicted of attacking and shooting several horses in Eastern Kentucky have been sentenced to six months in jail. Pike Circuit Judge Eddy Coleman sentenced Jacob Leslie Ratliff and Michael Ross Damron, both 18, on Friday. With time served, the two will be headed to jail for 99 more days. Official said the teens, driving a truck and armed with two shotguns and a pistol, gunned down a herd of horses on a strip mine in Beaver near Elkhorn City in January 2007. Three horses died from multiple gunshot wounds and five others were injured. One 4-year-old mare named Ghost was shot more than 50 times. One horse owner, Trish Varney, said Friday that the sentence was fair. As a part of the deal, Ratliff and Damron had to each pay $25,000 restitution to the horses' owners. "A light punishment would depreciate the seriousness of the crime," Coleman said Friday. "But an overly harsh punishment would be detrimental to their future. It may destroy any redemptive value of these gentlemen." The two had previously pleaded guilty to charges of felony criminal mischief and misdemeanor animal cruelty, agreeing to serve a 30-day sentence and enter a diversion program. Coleman rejected that agreement last year and sent the case to trial in September. A mistrial was declared after defense attorney Stephen Owens said in an opening statement that Damron had to take medication for impulse control. Coleman said attorneys did not alert the court to a mental defense. Jacob Ratliff's father, Mark Ratliff, said Friday that he wished Coleman had considered expunging the crime from their records. "I think it was fair, but I think they deserved it to be expunged because they've never gotten to vote and have no prior record whatsoever," Mark Ratliff said. "Everybody's allowed one mistake in their life." Damron and Ratliff have sued an Eastern Kentucky television station and reporter for identifying them before they were charged as adults. The lawsuit says police asked a WYMT-TV reporter to withhold the teens' names because they were 17 at the time of their arrests. The news station has declined to comment on the suit.

Source: Lexington Herald-Leader - April 7, 2008 Update posted on Apr 7, 2008 - 10:30PM

Two teens charged with attacking a herd of horses in Pike County -- fatally shooting three of the animals --have reached a plea deal with prosecutors. Jacob Leslie Ratliff, 18, and Michael Ross Damron, 17, pleaded guilty Thursday to three felony counts of first-degree criminal mischief, five misdemeanor counts of second-degree criminal mischief and eight misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty, according to court officials. Prosecutors have recommended they each be sentenced to five years in prison and pay restitution to the owners of the slaughtered horses. However, as part of the deal, prosecutors have said they will not oppose a motion for shock probation after the teens serve at least six months in jail. Ratliff and Damron declined to comment Thursday. Defense Attorney Stephen Owens said he hopes Thursday's pleas finally bring an end to the case, which has a somewhat complicated history. This is the second time the teens have entered pleas. Ratliff and Damron, initially charged as juveniles, pleaded guilty in May, after Commonwealth's Attorney Rick Bartley offered them 30-day sentences, supervised probation after release, restitution and community service. They withdrew the guilty pleas, choosing to face a jury, when Circuit Judge Eddy Coleman rejected the plea bargain. A trial was held in September, but a mistrial was declared after Owens said in an opening statement that Damron had to take medication for impulse control. The judge said the defense had not given required notification of a mental defense in the case. Owens, the attorney for the teens, said he hopes Coleman will go along with the plea agreement this time. Coleman is scheduled to sentence the teens on March 14. Thursday's plea deal came four days before the teens were set to go on trial. Police said that in January 2007, Ratliff and Damron -- driving a truck and armed with two shotguns and a pistol -- ran down the herd of horses on a strip mine in Beaver near Elkhorn City. Three horses died: Ghost, a 4-year-old mare, who was shot more than 50 times; Oldie, a 14-year-old pony favored by children who rode trails at Breaks Interstate Park, and Minx, a 2-year-old mare. Five other horses were wounded. Just as the criminal case might come to a close, Ratliff and Damron have filed a lawsuit against an Eastern Kentucky television station that covered the horse killings. Ratliff and Damron, both 17 at the time of the horse killings, are suing WYMT, a television news station in Hazard, and reporter Danielle Morgan for releasing their names before they were charged as adults. The lawsuit says Ratliff and Damron were arrested by the Pike County Sheriff's Department and charged as juveniles with criminal mischief and cruelty to animals on Jan. 26, 2007. At that time, the lawsuit says, the sheriff's department told Morgan that Ratliff and Damron were juveniles. They told her not to mention the boys' names. However, Morgan filmed Damron and Ratliff as they were being moved from one police cruiser to another. She named the boys, and footage showing their faces aired several times on WYMT and was posted on its Web site, according to the suit. The teens later were indicted on multiple felony and misdemeanor charges, in which they were charged as adults. In addition to Morgan and WYMT, the suit names Georgia-based Gray Television Group, which owns the Hazard television station. Ernestine Cornett, general manager at WYMT, told The Associated Press that the station generally does not comment on lawsuits and had not seen the complaint. Damron and Ratliff are seeking a trial by jury and damages. The suit requests that any damages recovered be directed to the victims in the criminal case or any other entity dealing with horses to be designated by the plaintiffs.

Source: Lexington Herald-Leader - Jan 31, 2008 Update posted on Jan 31, 2008 - 4:29PM

The case against two eastern Kentucky teenagers accused of torturing and shooting several horses was declared a mistrial based on an attorney's opening statement. The judge called off the trial when Steve Owens, attorney for Jacob Ratliff, 17, and Michael Damron, 18, revealed to the jury that Damron had to take medication for impulse control. Prosecutors challenged Owens' opening statement. Circuit Judge Eddy Coleman said he based his decision on a state law that requires attorneys to give a 20-day written notice if they intend to use mental illness or defect as a defense in a criminal case - something Owens did not provide in this case. He rescheduled the trial for Feb. 4. Last January, Ratliff and Damron, driving a truck and armed with two shotguns and a pistol, ran down a herd of horses on a strip mine in Beaver near Elkhorn City, authorities said. Three horses died from multiple gunshot wounds and five others were injured. The two had pleaded guilty to charges of felony criminal mischief and misdemeanor animal cruelty, agreeing to serve a 30-day sentence and enter a diversion program. Coleman rejected the plea deal, sending the case to trial.

Source: Kentucky.Com - Sept 12, 2007 Update posted on Sep 13, 2007 - 5:39PM

An Eastern Kentucky judge has refused to approve a plea deal for two teens who admitted to attacking a herd of horses, fatally shooting three of the animals. Pike Circuit Judge Eddy Coleman declined to accept the offer, which included a 30-day sentence for the teens, who were both 17 when the horses were tortured and killed in January, The Appalachian News-Express reported. The two pleaded guilty last week to three felony criminal mischief charges, five misdemeanor criminal mischief charges and eight misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty. They could each be sentenced to up to 16 years in prison. On Jan. 25, the teens, driving a truck and armed with two shotguns and a pistol, ran down a herd of horses on a strip mine in Beaver near Elkhorn City. Ghost, a 4-year-old mare shot more than 50 times, Oldie, a 14-year old pony favored by children who rode trails at the Breaks Interstate Park, and Minx, a 2-year-old mare, died, authorities said. Five other horses were wounded. The plea deal would have placed the former East Ridge High School students under diversion for two years, meaning the charges would be dismissed if they stayed out of trouble during supervised probation. Commonwealth's Attorney Rick Bartley also recommended that they complete 200 hours of community service and pay restitution to the owners of horses that were killed and tortured. "This case is a very difficult one to try to decide what to do, so I'm not surprised that (Coleman) disagreed with my assessment of the case, and I respect that," Bartley said. Steve Owens, the attorney for the teens, could not be reached for comment. Coleman did not comment on the case. The judge scheduled another hearing for May 24.

Source: TheHorse.Com - May 20, 2007 Update posted on May 24, 2007 - 3:24PM

Two Pike County high school students charged with killing three horses and shooting others in January have pleaded guilty in Pike Circuit Court. Jacob Leslie Ratliff, 18, and Michael Ross Damron, 17, entered pleas Friday to three counts of felony criminal mischief and eight misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty, according to court officials. The plea agreement allows the two East Ridge High School students to graduate this month before serving separate 30-day jail terms. After serving their sentences, both will be placed under supervised probation for two years and required to pay restitution costs to the horses' owner. Damron, who will be 18 this summer, will serve his sentence in a juvenile detention center. Judge Eddy Coleman scheduled sentencing for June 27.

Source: Lexington Herald-Leader - May 15, 2007 Update posted on May 15, 2007 - 3:05PM

Two teens accused of attacking a group of horses for fun plead not guilty. 18-year-old Jacob Ratliff and 17-year-old Michael Damron were in court this afternoon facing charges of criminal mischief and cruelty to animals. Several of the horses died as a result of the shooting... one was shot more than 30 times. The teens were placed on home incarceration and will be back in court in May.

Source: WKYT - Feb 26. 2007 Update posted on Feb 26, 2007 - 9:05PM

References

• Cincinnati Post - Feb 1, 2007
• Lexington Herald - Feb 1, 2007

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