Pet-Abuse.Com - Animal Abuse Case Details: Cattle neglect - 14 found dead

Cattle neglect - 14 found dead
Columbus, OH (US)

Incident Date: Friday, Mar 18, 2005
County: Franklin
Local Map: available
Disposition: Alleged

Alleged: Roy Hoffman

Case Updates: 2 update(s) available

Case ID: 4255

Classification: Neglect / Abandonment

Animal: cow

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Charges were filed April 7, 2005 after an investigation into dead cattle found on a west Columbus farm, according to the Capital Area Humane Society. Roy Hoffman faces six counts of animal cruelty after 14 dead cows were found on his Rome-Hilliard Road farm last month, the Humane Society said.

Two additional cows were taken to Ohio State's veterinary clinic for treatment, NBC 4 reported.

Officials said several of the dead cows that were discovered appeared to be malnourished. The carcasses had to be removed from the site with construction equipment because they were engulfed in mud, the Humane Society said.

The Capital Area Humane Society searched Hoffman's property on March 18 after people complained about seeing the dead animals from the road. Each of the misdemeanor counts carry a maximum penalty of a $750 fine and 90 days in jail.

Assistant city prosecutor Bridget Carty said about two dozen cattle remain on the farm and appear to be in good shape.

Hoffman has served for about four decades as secretary of the Franklin County Agricultural Society, which runs the Franklin County Fair. No listing for the society could be found.

Case Updates

The cattle have been dead for nearly two years, yet a former Franklin County fair official whom prosecutors hold responsible has yet to be tried.

Judge Harland H. Hale took nearly a year to decide whether some key evidence should be allowed at the trial of Roy Hoffman in Franklin County Environmental Court.

Hoffman was charged with animal cruelty after 14 dead cattle and two emaciated ones were found on his farm in March 2005.

Ten months later, on Jan. 6, Hale heard a defense motion to bar evidence related to the animals because Capital Area Humane Society agents did not get a search warrant the first time they walked onto the farm.

Hale issued a written decision Dec. 14 after inquiries from a Dispatch reporter. He ruled that the prosecution�s evidence can be presented in court.

"That has been the biggest single thing that has held everything up," said Steve Dunbar, an assistant city prosecutor.

Hale said at the time of the hearing that he expected to rule within a month. Now he defends his delay in writing the 2 1 /2-page decision.

"The legal issue is complicated," Hale said. "What you see in a couple of pages takes weeks to research.

"This case will get to trial in a timely fashion just like all the others."

Criminal misdemeanor cases should be resolved within six months, according to Ohio Supreme Court guidelines. However, most judges have some cases that go beyond the deadlines. Judges are required to submit monthly reports to the Supreme Court that show the number of such cases.

Municipal Judge James E. Green, the court�s administrative judge, said he did not know specifics of the Hoffman case, but an 11-month wait for a decision on a motions hearing "would require some explanation."

"My initial reaction would be that decision should have been written eight months ago," he said.

Hale had 22 cases pending beyond the state Supreme Court guidelines in October, the most-recent data available. That was the highest number among Franklin County Municipal Court judges that month.

Hoffman, 68, is charged with five misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty. He is scheduled to be tried Feb. 26 and has requested a jury.

The case began on March 17, 2005, when workers from the Humane Society checked out a tip that dead animals could be seen on Hoffman�s farm at Hilliard-Rome Road and Manor Park Drive in western Franklin County.

The society�s Kerry Manion returned the next day with a search warrant. Four dead animals and two sick ones were removed. The remains of the others, in some cases just bones, were taken later.

Both sides agree that the cattle were stuck in deep mud and couldn�t reach food or water.

Hoffman, a member of the Franklin County Agricultural Society for 40 years and its secretary until September, has maintained that the animals were cared for but had been stranded in the mud because of heavy rain.

He declined to comment for this story.

His attorney, Robert Cesner Jr., said the case has some "complex issues" that Hale had to sort through, including the request to suppress evidence.

Hale ruled that Manion did not need a search warrant after seeing three dead cattle on the farm.

Hoffman and someone driving an all-terrain vehicle met Manion that day on the farm.

Cesner had argued that Manion needed Hoffman�s permission to set foot on his property. But Hale said Hoffman never told Manion to get off his property, so the search was voluntary.

The initial search without a warrant was "a brief, unobtrusive and routine" examination of an open field, Hale said.

State law allows Humane Society officials to go onto property if they think animals are in immediate danger or if they fear that evidence could be removed before they can get a search warrant.

Source: The Columbus Dispatch - Dec 24, 2006
Update posted on Dec 27, 2006 - 2:58PM

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A local cow farmer is facing animal cruelty charges because of the conditions on his Hilliard-area property. Now, the man is trying to get evidence gathered in his case thrown out before trial, NBC 4's Karin Hirschey reported.

A hearing was held January 6, 2006 to suppress key evidence in the case against Roy Hoffman. The judge said both sides raised interesting and complex legal questions, so no decision was made, Hirschey reported. Officials said the heart of the case centers around the issues of consent and privacy.

Hoffman was charged with animal cruelty after 14 dead cows were found on his Rome-Hilliard Road farm. Officials at the Capital Area Humane Society said they have the pictures to prove it. "It shows a dead black cow. It appears that the eyeballs are gone. The animal is in mud and that its legs are ... underneath the body and the spine is visible," said Kerry Manion, of the Humane Society.
The photos and other evidence is in jeopardy of being thrown out before the trial can begin. The defense argued that the Humane Society illegally entered the farm to take the photos without Hoffman's consent or a search warrant. Hoffman's lawyers also argued that their client is innocent of all charges and that he did whatever was necessary to protect his animals.

The prosecution disagreed, saying they have other avenues to use that will prove their case.

Source: NBC4 News - January 6, 2006
Update posted on Jan 6, 2006 - 9:45PM

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References

	NBC Channel 4 - April 8, 2005
	Ohio News Network - April 9, 2005
	DaytonDailyNews.com

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Cattle neglect - 14 found deadColumbus, OH (US)

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Cattle neglect - 14 found dead
Columbus, OH (US)