Case Snapshot
Case ID: 13522
Classification: Neglect / Abandonment
Animal: horse
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Attorneys/Judges
Prosecutor(s): Jason Faw
Judge(s): Thomas D. Horne


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



Monday, Jan 14, 2008

County: Loudoun

Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted

Defendant/Suspect: Dennis B. Danley

Case Updates: 2 update(s) available

A man charged with 48 counts of animal cruelty in Loudoun County was taken into custody in West Virginia on Monday [March 31, 2008] for violating the terms of his probation in an earlier animal cruelty case.

Dennis B. Danley, 55, of Charles Town, W.Va., has been accused of mistreating four dozen thoroughbreds, which the county seized in January at a farm in Unison after animal control officials found many to be severely malnourished and diseased.

Danley pleaded no contest to one count of animal cruelty in West Virginia last year in a similar case and was given a suspended sentence of 90 days, placed on probation and ordered not to own any horses. According to Loudoun Commonwealth's Attorney Jason Faw, a magistrate in West Virginia ruled Monday that Danley had violated his probation. "He was immediately remanded to the custody of the sheriff to begin serving his sentence," Faw wrote in an e-mail.


Case Updates

A horse trainer from West Virginia was found guilty of 42 counts of animal cruelty in Loudoun County Circuit Court and ordered to serve 56 days in jail, significantly less time than the jury recommended.

Dennis B. Danley, 56, was indicted on 48 counts of animal cruelty last February after Loudoun County Animal Care and Control seized 48 horses from a farm in Unison. A veterinarian had determined the horses were malnourished and neglected.

The Loudoun County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office eventually dropped the charges to 42 after determining Danley was not responsible for six of the horses.

During the two-day trial, Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Jason Faw presented evidence about the health of each horse including an 11 month old that had to be euthanized. Photographs admitted into evidence showed horses in varied states of emaciation. Some of them were several hundred pounds underweight, Loudoun County Commonwealth's Attorney Jim Plowman said.

"The 'Henneke Body Condition Score Chart,' a scientific method for judging a horse's body condition was used to evaluate the severity of each animal's condition," Plowman said. "The method assesses the horse's body fat at six major points on a horse's body where changes are the most responsive. The chart "grades" the horse on a scale of one to nine with the lowest number reflecting extreme malnutrition and emaciation to the highest number indicating extreme overweight."

Most of the horses received a score of one with the highest being three, which still means the animal is thin, Plowman said.

He added that the horses were also in crowded conditions without food or water and that they were seen "eating their own feces" at times.

Some photographs entered into evidence showed frozen water troughs. The horses had apparently tried to get water by chipping away at the ice with their hooves and licking holes through it to get to the water below, Plowman said.

"It's truly a miracle that these horses didn't all die under these conditions, and I credit the Animal Control Office in acting swiftly so that most could be rescued," Plowman said. "The public and special interest groups should also be thanked for stepping up and provided the necessary supplies and volunteer hours needed to care for these animals until proper homes could be located."

This isn't the first time Danley has been convicted of animal cruelty.

In March 2007, he was charged with 10 counts of animal cruelty in West Virginia after the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department found malnourished, sick and deceased horses he trained on property south of Charles Town.

In August 2007, he pleaded no contest to one count of animal cruelty and was sentenced to 90 days in prison. The sentence was suspended, and Danley was put on probation for a year. He also was ordered to not own animals for five years.

After the seven member jury in the Loudoun case found Danley guilty, the trial went into the sentencing phase.

The jury recommended a prison sentence of 588 days for Danley – 14 days for each count – and fines totaling $50,800 - $1,200 for each count.

Judge J. Howe Brown decided to impose the sentence immediately after the recommendation was handed down. However, he suspended all but 56 days of it and suspended the entire fine, Plowman said.

Danley will still have to pay court costs, which total about $12,000, Plowman said.

"While I respect the decision of the judge and his authority to do so, I don't agree to the extent which the jury's verdict was reduced, especially in light of Mr. Danley's prior conviction in West Virginia for a similar offense, Plowman said.

"The jury is the collective voice of the people in Loudoun County, and [it] set the price for criminal behavior. This Office will continue to include the people of Loudoun in our system of justice; their voice is one of the most important variables in the criminal process."
Source: Loudountimes.com - Jan 22, 2009
Update posted on Jan 22, 2009 - 7:22PM 
The case against the Loudoun horse trainer charged with 48 counts of cruelty to animals has been continued until after the New Year.

Dennis Danley was scheduled to stand trial beginning today, but a request by his defense attorney for a continuance has led to a new trial date. Danley's three-day trial will now begin Jan. 20, 2009.

Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Jason Faw said the continuance was the result of a personal matter for Danley and did not relate directly to the case against him.

Danley was charged in Loudoun County in January after 48 horses were seized from a Middleburg-area farm he had leased. Animal control officers had been monitoring the farm since November 2007, after an anonymous tip informed them the horses might be suffering from mistreatment. Danley was later charged with one count of cruelty to animals for each horse.

Danley also had a suspended sentence in Jefferson County, WV, after he pleaded no contest to one count of animal cruelty in 2007. In that case, he originally had been charged with 10 counts of animal cruelty after authorities found 10 mares with exposed rib cages and spines among 60 horses at a farm near Charles Town, WV. As part of his plea, Danley also agreed to give up his horses and stay out of the horse breeding business for five years. Under the deal, however, Danley could still work as a trainer.

During a pretrial hearing in June, Circuit Court Judge Thomas D. Horne limited what Faw could present about Danley's previous conviction, limiting the prosecution to only bringing the conviction up during the evidence portion of trial and not the opening statements.

Danley's new trial is set for 9 a.m., Jan. 20, 21 and 22 in Loudoun County Circuit Court.
Source: Leesburg Tday - Aug 4, 2008
Update posted on Aug 4, 2008 - 5:21PM 

References

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