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Ann Arnold, 59, of 131 Wilton Road in the town of Greenfield was found guilty of 19 counts of animal abuse last May for failure to properly care for the horses. Following a complaint from neighbors about the pasture the animals were living in and concerns for their health, Arnold had been arrested. The animals were emaciated and had serious skin and hoof conditions.
After a two-day bench trial, she was found guilty and placed on three years’ probation, ordered to pay a $400 fine, reimburse Upstate SPCA $7,112 for costs they incurred monitoring the horses during the investigation and she was ordered to undergo a mental health evaluation. She was also forbidden to have horses on her property.
Arnold was given 60 days to have the horses adopted out or the county would remove them. The Saratoga County District Attorney’s office worked with Arnold, Upstate SPCA and Catskill Animal Sanctuary to ensure the adoption of Arnold’s horses. All those horses were placed in other homes.
But by September, Arnold had once again moved horses onto her Greenfield property. This time there were 14 horses she had been keeping at Washington County property owned by her brother. Arnold was re-arrested and accused of violating her probation, but her case was transferred to Providence because the judge who had originally sentenced her was the one who reported to state police the horses on her property.
Arnold’s attorney argued at Monday night’s court appearance that Arnold could not be held in violation of her probation because she no longer owned the land – she had transferred ownership of her property to her brother – and that the horses were not hers. She had also attempted to circumvent the charges by having 11 of the horses transferred to a certified horse boarding facility the Saturday prior. She kept three of the horses, she said, because they had “special dietary needs.”
But that didn’t cut it, said Saratoga County District Attorney James Murphy III.
Noting that while the second set of horses were in good health, that did not mean they were safe under Arnold’s care.
“They had just been moved there from another location,” said Murphy. “She is a convicted horse abuser and any horse she cares for is in jeopardy of abuse given her history and conviction of neglecting and abusing animals.”
He said the way she tried to go around the order by transferring ownership of her property to her brother and by removing some of the animals hours before her appearance in court was a deliberate disregard of the law, her sentence and an attempt to not be held responsible for her decisions.
“She is not permitted to have any horses,” said Murphy. “She is thumbing her nose at the court and at us and in an effort to avoid the consequences of her actions; she had 11 of the horses moved. As for the three she kept, she said they had ‘special dietary needs,’ but any certified horse facility would know how to care for horses with special dietary needs.”
Murphy said Arnold will remain jailed until the remaining three horses are moved off of the property and their placements approved.
“The judge agreed with us and put her in jail until she removes the horses from the property,” said Murphy.
But that doesn’t let Arnold off the hook. Even if she does have the equines removed, she could face jail time for violating her probation. She will be sentenced on that charge March 4.
