Attorneys/Judges
| Judge(s): | William Heatwole |
Horse starved to death, more seized
Waynesboro, VA (US)Incident Date: Thursday, Mar 5, 2009
County: Waynesboro City
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Tory Allen Garrett
Case Updates: 3 update(s) available
The owner of a Waynesboro farm faces a cruelty charge related to the apparent starving death of one of his horses.
A state veterinarian says emaciation and parasites killed the horse earlier this month. A woman reportedly bought the animal from 53-year-old Tory Allen Garrett. She says she took it straight to her vet, but it had to be put down.
Waynesboro police say they've been called to the Garrett farm before, but did not find evidence of criminal neglect. According to Sergeant Kelly Walker with the Waynesboro Police Department, "This past year there was a horse that had died on the property. We've been involved in previous complaints...investigating them about the care of horses on that property."
Neighbors claim to have seen Garrett's other horses appeared malnourished, sometimes even unable to stand on their own. Garrett says he routinely buys neglected horses and tries nurses them back to health.
Case UpdatesA judge Friday ordered an Afton man to give up all agricultural animals, including dozens of horses and ponies seized by authorities this month for suspected malnourishment and disease.
Tory Allen Garrett, 53, repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in recent weeks and said officials would not find sickly animals on his farm, but capitulated to evidence in court.
Two ponies from Garrett's Waynesboro pasture have died this month. Most recently, a pony suffering from pneumonia and a heart murmur died in veterinary care â€" evidence enough, defense attorney Stephen Strosnider conceded, to prevent Garrett's recovery of 40 other animals seized March 17 by Waynesboro police.
Police raided Garrett's farm several days after authorities charged him with one count of animal cruelty for the death of another pony. Officials said they found horse skeletons on the property and the farm ill-equipped for the horses he kept. Garrett could face more criminal charges pending physical evaluation, said Waynesboro animal control officer Dee Price.
"He did the right thing today and relinquished ownership," said Debbie Caywood, director of the Augusta Regional Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. "After seeing his reaction the day we were there in the field, I'm really surprised he did turn over custody today. ... I thought we were in for a battle."
The most recently deceased pony, "Hope," rated a "1" on the Henneke Body Condition Scoring System, indicating a severely underweight animal, said Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney David Ledbetter. The pony was unable to stand for most of its time at Mountain View Equine Hospital, where doctors built a custom sling to accommodate the abnormally small animal, veterinarian Scott Reiners said.
After the hearing, Garrett said he hopes the horses will find a good home.
"I don't believe the general population was [sickly]," he said.
Among the seized animals, 11 more scored a body condition of "1," and 24 scored "2" or "3," Caywood said. Many of the mares are pregnant. Caywood said the next 30 days will be "critical" in monitoring and nursing the animals back to health.
Waynesboro District Court Judge William Heatwole also ordered Garrett to cover the costs of seizure, removal, feed and medical care, which could grow to thousands of dollars, authorities said. And the judge's order ranges beyond Waynesboro.
Garrett said he has turned over all livestock to the SPCA.
Nelson County residents told The News Virginian that Garrett recently kept animals on property in Afton, but he said those animals are owned by renters.
"I do not have any other horses," he said.
Waynesboro animal control officer Dee Price said more criminal charges are possible.
"This is just the first step ... in what's to come," she said.
Garrett is scheduled to appear April 20 in Waynesboro court on the animal cruelty charge. | Source: News Virginian - March 28, 2009
Update posted on Apr 5, 2009 - 8:47AM |
An Afton man who saw 39 sickly horses and two donkeys carted away from his Waynesboro farm last week lost his rights to own the animals Friday during a petition hearing in Waynesboro General District Court.
Tory A. Garrett, 53, was arrested March 10 on one charge of misdemeanor animal cruelty after allegedly selling an emaciated horse to a buyer. The horse later died.
A second animal, a pony, seized from Garrett's farm died earlier this week, and Garrett acknowledged in court Friday that inadequate care was the culprit, according to David Ledbetter, a Waynesboro assistant prosecutor.
The health of a horse is graded from 1 to 10 through the Henneke Body Condition Scoring System. Of the 41 horses seized last week, all but one was graded a 1 or 2.
"A lot of them were 1's," Ledbetter said.
The seized animals are now under the care of the Augusta Regional SPCA. Ledbetter said Garrett will eventually have to pay for the housing, feeding and medical care of the animals. "Up to the point they're ready to be adopted," he said.
According to an affidavit to a search warrant, authorities launched an investigation targeting Garrett when the woman who bought the horse called police. The woman told police that Garrett informed her that the horse had been down for three days and had not been eating well.
"The horse had gross signs of malnutrition. Ribs, vertebrae, hips and pelvis bones were protruding and lacking any muscle mass," the affidavit stated. The woman told police she also saw several horses that appeared sick.
Police described Garrett as a buyer, seller and breeder of horses.
A hearing on the animal cruelty charge is scheduled for April 20. More charges could be pending, according to Waynesboro police. | Source: Newsleader - March 28, 2009
Update posted on Mar 30, 2009 - 3:29AM |
Authorities have seized 34 horses and ponies belonging to a Nelson County man who was charged last week with animal cruelty.
Waynesboro Animal Control officer Dee Price said many of the animals taken from the Waynesboro pasture Tuesday were severely underweight. Police loaded them in trailers for transport to an Augusta County farm.
The owner, 53-year-old Tory Allen Garrett of Afton, was charged with animal cruelty after a business associate of his took an emaciated pony to a veterinarian.
Price says Garrett could face more charges pending evaluations of the seized animals.
Garrett says a veterinarian was about to examine his horses when he happened upon the police raid. He says authorities would not find any sickly or mistreated animals. | Source: The Seattle Times - March 19, 2009
Update posted on Mar 19, 2009 - 1:24PM |
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