Pet-Abuse.Com - Animal Abuse Case Details: Animal neglect - 11 found dead

Animal neglect - 11 found dead
Black Forest, CO (US)

Incident Date: Thursday, Feb 15, 2007
County: El Paso
Local Map: available
Disposition: Alleged
Charges: Felony CTA

Alleged:
» Debra Everet
» Ron Hemby

Case Updates: 2 update(s) available

Case ID: 10816

Classification: Neglect / Abandonment

Animal: horse, cow, other farm animal, goat

View more cases in CO (US)

The El Paso County Sheriff's Office is investigating allegations of animal cruelty in Black Forest. On February 15th, Deputies responded to a call at 12760 Vollmer Road. They found at least eleven animals dead. They removed the rest, including horses, cows, llamas and other animals. They were said to be in poor health.

This was not the only case being investigated by the county. In the last four years, the number of animal cruelty cases has grown dramatically.

In 2005, the county received 24 calls. In 2006, that number jumped to 42. As a result, Sheriff Terry Maketa decided to create a special team of Vets, the Humane Society, and the District Attorney. It would respond to this and future cases.

Deputies served a search warrant Feb 20 on Vollmer Road and removed 26 animals from the property. "Further investigation revealed some carcasses on the property as well as some animals that had failed to receive the proper nutrition and hydration," said Bureau Chief Joe Breister.

He said his animal cruelty caseload continued to grow. He said images from other cases, like a recent one in Calhan, resulted in more awareness.

Also, as rural areas become urbanized, he said there was more exposure. "As a result, more people see these animals on a daily basis and recognize what they claim to be a decline in their care and welfare," he said.

Sam Burke is a friend of the tenants on Vollmer Road. He told FOX21 News the abuse allegations against them were not true.

He said their neighbors and a developer across the road wanted to get rid of them. Also, he blamed the animals' conditions on the difficult winter.

Breister said, "That is a contributing factor to some of these animals that we have found."

But for an extended period of time, Breister said, the harsh winter was no excuse. "When you have a horse with ribs sticking out, that goes beyond the harsh conditions. That's just a lack of being fed."

He said the Sheriff's Office would present the case to the District Attorney Friday. At that point, it would decide who would be charged and how many counts he or she will face.

In the meantime, the county and Humane Society said they did not have the resources to help all the rescued animals.

One of the main concerns was finding members of the community who could assist in the care and sheltering of animals that have been seized or are otherwise in need of homes.

Sheriff Maketa requested any organizations or private citizens in the area, who could provide such care and shelter to contact the Sheriffs Office to be placed on a reference list of those who could be contacted when such a need arises.

To learn how you can help, contact Lieutenant Clif Northam, at 719-520-7244 to be placed on this "Animal Aid Help" list.

Case Updates

A Black Forest woman suspected of animal cruelty fled to Texas with her teenage daughter and boyfriend the day officials removed 26 sickly animals from her property, a relative said Monday.

The animals � llamas, goats, cows, horses, hens, a sheep and a dog � were taken from Debra Everet�s property Feb. 20 at 12760 Vollmer Road a few days after El Paso County sheriff�s deputies found 11 carcasses there.

�Debra made people feel that she cared for the animals, but her only concern was making money,� said Everet�s nephew, 32-year-old Gary Baker, who lives in Ventura, Calif. �She had bought animals at the auction that looked bad, hoping to quickly make them look healthy and resell them for a profit. She would buy anything that she could get cheap.�

Sheriff�s investigators on Monday talked with another one of Everet�s relatives, who also said the woman fled with her daughter, 15, and 62-year-old boyfriend, Ron Hemby.

�The information I got is they left town that night to avoid prosecution,� sheriff�s detective Patrick Gattenby said.

Summonses to appear in court on suspicion of animal cruelty had been issued for Everet and Hemby, but arrest warrants are expected to be obtained today because they ran, and the two will be considered fugitives, Gattenby said.

Everet, who turns 50 today, and Hemby have limited physical mobility, and the teenager was trying to care for the animals, sheriff�s investigators said.

Baker said he was with Everet�s 83-year-old mother when Everet called to say she was �skipping town� and asked for $500. Everet didn�t say exactly where she was headed, Baker said.

�They were going to go to Texas because Ron�s aunt is really old and is supposed to die, and they�re going to inherit his aunt�s property,� Baker said.

Baker said Everet told family she plans on getting more animals in Texas.

�For years, everyone in the family has told her she should get rid of the animals. She�d pretty much blow it off and go get more animals,� Baker said.

Everet is listed on several goat-breeding Web sites, calling her operation Aaery Pines Dairy Goats or Aaery Pines.

Everet�s neighbor told the sheriff�s office on Feb. 15 that some of the woman�s animals looked underfed.

Sheriff�s deputies found 11 carcasses and 26 dehydrated and malnourished animals.

The dead animals included a pig, two calves and a dog, but the others were too decomposed to identify, sheriff�s investigators said.

Officials made arrangements to care for the animals at the 23-acre property until they were removed.

Everet, who jointly owns the land with her mother, signed over ownership of the animals, investigators said.

Source: Gazette.Com - Feb 26, 2007
Update posted on Feb 27, 2007 - 12:34AM

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One resident could face charges after authorities say they found more than 10 dead animals on a Black Forest property. The Sheriff�s office is asking for volunteers who not only can report a possible problem, but help solve it as well.

12760 Vollmer is roadside property offering passers-by a front row seat of whatever's out in the open.

"You can see it right from the street. The cows, they've got blood comin' down their ears and what not,� said Black Forest resident Tyson Henry. The property, he says, often ended up a home for sick and injured animals.

But good care, he says, was at times more than what those who live here could provide.

"Some people have a bigger heart than a pocket," he said.

On Tuesday, authorities pulled more than 20 animals in bad shape from the property, including some cows and horses.

"There's no excuse for an extended period of time it would take to get a horse to the conditions we're seeing," said El Paso County Sheriff�s Office Bureau Chief Joe Breister.

Whether it turns out to be nothing, intentional neglect, or a case of residents over extending their means, Breister says more of these reports are coming in as more people move into rural parts of the county and see what they perceive to be neglect.

But Breister says the county can't afford to care for all the animals they recover: they need some help forming what they call an Animal Aid List.

"It would really be on the goodwill of volunteers who'd be willing to take the animals in and assist us," Breister said.

And as the reports of neglect increase, the Sheriff's Office will consider all offers of assistance.

Investigators will present the Vollmer road case to the district attorney�s office Friday morning.

If you can offer help for the Animal Aid List, they ask volunteers to call 520-7244

Source: KKTV - Feb 26, 2007
Update posted on Feb 26, 2007 - 8:19PM

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Animal neglect - 11 found deadBlack Forest, CO (US)

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Animal neglect - 11 found dead
Black Forest, CO (US)