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Case #10741 Rating: 2.8 out of 5
9 horses neglected, 6 found dead
Kalispell, MT (US)Incident Date: Tuesday, Feb 6, 2007
County: Flathead
Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: Tina Pickton
Case Updates: 4 update(s) available
A Columbia Falls woman is to appear March 1 in District Court in the starvation deaths of at least six horses and severe malnourishment of two others.
A ninth horse is missing.
Tina Pickton, also known as Tina Houston, 32, is charged with felony aggravated animal cruelty. She is being held in the Flathead County jail on $20,000 bail.
The horses were found on Feb 6 in a pasture east of Kalispell, the Daily Inter Lake newspaper reported.
A friend of the landowner from whom Pickton leased the pasture space saw the horses and called the Flathead County Sheriff's Office. He reported one horse dead and the rest malnourished, Undersheriff Pete Wingert said.
When deputies arrived that day, the man told them he had found two more dead plus two live horses.
The sheriff's office called brand inspector Tom Harmon, who met deputies at the pasture on Thursday. Harmon and a fellow brand inspector found six dead horses: a 5-year-old black mare, 2-year-old sorrel, a yearling Clydesdale stud, a 21-year-old sorrel gelding, and two colts born this year, a bay and a sorrel.
After talking with the landowner to learn who had leased the pasture, then talking with Pickton, they determine there was another horse missing.
Wingert said the two surviving horses were taken to LaSalle Equine Clinic for care.
Pickton insisted she had been feeding the horses, according to the investigation report.
However, the brand inspector told the Sheriff's Office, ''Without question, the cause of death was starvation.''
Other factors at the pasture indicated the horses had not been fed or watered in some time. Most of the willow branches at the area had been eaten off by the horses, the report stated, and the ground at the base of the trees had been pawed as if the animals were looking for food.
Wingert said no tracks were found around the pasture to indicate hay had been brought. The only water source in the fenced pasture was a pond area that appeared to have dried up, he said, and there were no tracks in the area to indicate that someone had been there to break the ice.
A feeder and water trough were located in the pasture, he said, but they were fenced off and did not appear to have been used in a long time.
Several neighbors who were interviewed by deputies said they had seen nobody there in a long time to feed or water the horses.
Case UpdatesA 32-year-old woman responsible for the starvation deaths of 6 horses in Montana has been sentenced to two years probation.
Tina Pickton also will be required to pay more than $6,000 in restitution and serve 400 hours of community service at an animal welfare organization.
She is prohibited from owning any type of animal while on probation.
Pickton was arrested in February after deputies investigated reports of dead horses in pasture she was leasing in Montana. Authorities found six dead horses and two malnourished horses, 1 of which was later put down.
Pickton pleaded guilty in September to one count of felony aggravated cruelty to animals and one count of misdemeanor animal cruelty. | Source: Montana's News Station - Nov 22, 2007
Update posted on Nov 27, 2007 - 4:38AM |
Tina Pickton pleaded guilty on Sept 26 in Flathead County District Court to one count of felony aggravated cruelty to animals for the starvation deaths of six horses and the severe malnourishment of two others.
Pursuant to a plea agreement, prosecutors will recommend that the 32-year-old Pickton, formerly of Columbia Falls, receive a three-year suspended prison sentence.
She also would be required to serve 200 hours of community service and would be prohibited from owning another animal.
Sentencing is scheduled in November.
Pickton, also known as Tina Houston, was arrested Feb. 8 after Flathead County Sheriff's deputies investigated reports that dead horses had been found on the pasture she leased on Bayou Road.
A neighbor came across what she thought were malnourished horses and contacted the landowner. The landowner then contacted authorities. Pickton had kept horses on that pasture for two years, according to court documents.
An inspection of the pasture on Feb. 7 turned up six dead and two malnourished horses.
One of the two horses found alive was later put down.
Brand inspectors determined that, without question, the cause of death was starvation, according to court documents.
Investigators found no evidence of feed or equipment for feeding horses. In an effort to stay alive, starving horses had stripped the bark from nearby trees.
Pickton, who no longer lives in the Flathead Valley, is free on a $20,000 commercial bond.
In exchange for a guilty plea on the animal cruelty charge, prosecutors dropped a felony charge for issuing bad checks.
Pickton was accused of writing more than $1,300 in bad checks in December 2006 and January 2007. The account the checks were written from had been closed, according to court documents. | Source: Daily InterLake - Sept 28, 2007
Update posted on Oct 22, 2007 - 4:42PM |
A Columbia Falls woman who pleaded not guilty to the starvation deaths of six horses may face additional charges after a seventh horse in her care had to be euthanized.
The animal was one of two severely malnourished horses rescued from a pasture east of Kalispell leased by 32-year-old Tina Pickton.
Flathead County sheriff's deputies also found six dead horses on the property.
Pickton, also known as Tina Houston, pleaded not guilty last month to felony charges of aggravated animal cruelty. She is free on $20,000 bail.
Sheriff Mike Meehan said veterinarians euthanized the horse Friday after calling him about a sore on its leg that would not heal.
The infection had worked its way to the bone despite efforts to treat it, and it was serious enough to destroy the horse's quality of life, Meehan said.
Veterinarians told him the wound was caused by extreme malnourishment, he said.
The information has been forwarded to the county attorney's office, which will decide whether another charge of aggravated animal cruelty is warranted.
Pickton's next scheduled court appearance is May 16. If convicted, she faces up to two years in jail, a $2,500 fine or both. | Source: Billings Gazette - April 8. 2007
Update posted on Apr 8, 2007 - 1:50PM |
Tina Pickton pleaded not guilty Thursday morning to felony charges of aggravated animal cruelty for the starvation deaths of six horses and severe malnourishment of two others.
The 32-year-old Columbia Falls woman was arrested Feb. 8 after Flathead County sheriff's deputies investigated reports that dead horses had been found on the pasture she leased on Bayou Road.
On visiting the property, deputies and brand inspectors found signs that horses had chewed tree branches and pawed into the dirt looking for food. There was no indication that anybody had brought food recently, and no water was available.
Pickton, also known as Tina Houston, is free on $20,000 commercial bond.
In the courtroom of District Judge Ted Lympus Thursday morning, she hid her face from observers and television cameras by bending her head forward and letting her long, straight hair fall on either side as she walked to the front and sat with her public defender. She maintained the posture as she walked out, and covered her face with her hand.
Her next court appearance is an omnibus hearing May 16, with a pre-trial hearing scheduled for May 23.
If found guilty of the charges, Pickton faces two years in jail, a $2,500 fine, or both.
Public Defender Vicki Frazier is representing Pickton. Dan Guzynski, deputy county attorney, is prosecuting. | Source: The Daily Interlake - March 2, 2007
Update posted on Mar 5, 2007 - 1:15AM |
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