After a summer which saw several high-profile animal abuse incidents in Saratoga, the county is taking action. 

A new task force has been formed to combat the issue and develop a coordinated response to incidents of abuse in Saratoga County. The task force is comprised of members of the Saratoga County District Attorney’s Office, Saratoga County Sheriff’s Department, animal control officers, Saratoga County Health Department, elected officials and the Saratoga County Animal Shelter. 

The task force invited members of the media to attend a meeting on April 1 where they went over recent changes to policies and procedures related to animal abuse. 

One of those changes was the introduction of a thermal camera to detect bruising on an animal without having to shave it. District Attorney Brett Eby said the camera was bought with asset forfeiture funds and it was given to the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office at the meeting.

The purchase and use of the camera was lauded by Saratoga County Animal Shelter Director Kelly Devall. 

“The one problem that we have is a lot of these animals are beaten in some way, shape or form and it’s very hard to detect the bruising,” Devall said.  “We did have one case where we were able to shave the dog and see very clear bruising. In other cases, we won’t be that lucky.” 

The shelter also recently received a new one-touch x-ray machine to help treat injuries more effectively as well as a new laser therapy machine to assist in treating animals with skin problems. 

On the law enforcement side, Deputies are being equipped with devices to measure heat and ammonium content in areas where animals are found to better assess the conditions the animals were living in. 

“Instead of walking in and saying the ammonium scent a was really strong, they will have an actual reading of what was going on, or how high the temperature was that the animals were having to exist in with no food and no water and the impact that could be having on those animals as far as their lungs go,” Devall said. 

Saratoga County Sheriff Jeff Brown said that deputies trained in animal abuse investigations will have access to these tools to help in their investigations. 

The task force came about after an incident at A Time Four Paws in the Town of Halfmoon, where multiple animals were found confined in an areas without proper ventilation or sufficient access to water in July 2025. One of the animals, a French bulldog named Gus tragically died from heatstroke as a result of the incident. 

The owner of A Time Fourr Paws, Yvette Giovanni, was recently indicted on charges of aggravated cruelty to animals, criminal mischief in the second degree, and 11 counts of overdriving, torturing, and injuring animals. The incident, along with another incident in the Town of Argyle led local lawmakers to propose legislation to regulate boarding facilities statewide. The bill is currently in committee. 

Brown said that the incident at A Time Four Paws highlighted the need for more coordination among the agencies involved in combating animal abuse. 

“One of the reasons that this task force was formed that was such a large case,” Brown said. “There were people coming in from all over on that.  We thought the task force would formalize those relationships. So when those big all hands-on-deck cases come in, we built the relationships and we’re more ready to respond to those cases.”

Another major development that came as a result of the animal abuse cases was the introduction of a county-wide animal abuse registry. In September, the Board of Supervisors unanimously passed the law creating the registry with it first being implemented in January of this year. 

Under the law, those who have been convicted of animal abuse offenses are required to register as an animal abuser and submit a photo. So far, one person has been added to the registry, Richard Mark Doyle, who pled guilty to animal abuse this year.  

Saratoga is one of 20 counties in New York to implement the registry. While independent groups compile this information, there is no state registry statewide. 

“There are different independent groups that will take all of the county registries, and they compile them on to one website,” Eby said. “Obviously, it would be better to have a statewide registry, but in Saratoga County, we didn’t want to wait for Albany to get tough on animal abuse and take it as seriously as we are.”

Saratoga National Historical Park will conduct several prescribed fires in the coming weeks. This year, the National Park Service (NPS) will burn approximately 120 acres of grasses, shrubs and woodlands at the park, focusing on the fields in the vicinity of Tour Stops 4 and 8.

 Depending on favorable weather and site conditions, the first burns could take place early to mid-April. Because certain prescription parameters must be met, including wind speed, relative humidity, fuel moisture and drought index, NPS cannot schedule upcoming prescribed fires precisely. 

While burns are underway, the park may temporarily close roads, visitor use facilities, parking areas and hiking trails. Park staff will post notifications of burns and closures in the alerts section of the park’s website and on social media on the days they take place.

 NPS uses prescribed fire as a tool for natural resource management throughout the country. The prescribed fire program at Saratoga National Historical Park has three primary objectives: restoration and perpetuation of scenic and cultural landscapes, including native plant species; reduction of wildland fuel loading; and enhancement of wildlife habitat.

Firefighters from the National Wildland Fire Service, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the Albany Pine Bush Preserve may provide assistance.

For more information about Saratoga National Historical Park, please call the Visitor Center at (518) 670-2985, visit www.nps.gov/sara, or find the park on Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) @SaratogaNHP.

It was a beautiful day in North Carolina for Jeff Beasley. 

On March 8, the 47-year-old resident of Saratoga Springs was in Indian Trail, North Carolina visiting his family for his sister’s birthday when he decided to go up in a small plane with his nephew, Nathan. The 21-year-old had just received his pilot’s license and was excited to show off his skills to his family. Beasley volunteered to go up first. 

After completing pre-flight checks, the two had just taken off when Beasley noticed something was wrong. 

“I noticed something, it just felt like the thrust wasn’t there,” Beasley said. “About the same time my nephew made the comment, ‘uh oh.’” 

At that point both men noticed that the propellor on the single engine Piper 28 wasn’t spinning as fast and the engine appeared to be stalling. Beasley said that he and his nephew didn’t panic and instead focused on getting the plane down safely. Both of them struggled to find a place to land as most of the area surrounding the airport was wooded. 

“Everywhere I looked, it was just thick woods, and I knew if we went into the woods, we were most likely not going to make it,” Beasley said. 

Beasley then spotted the place where they would eventually land — a cow pasture about a mile away from the airport in the opposite direction from where they took off. 

“I said, ‘Do you think we can get over there?’” Jeff recalls asking Nathan.  “And he said, ‘I don’t know, but we’re gonna try.’” 

At about 30 feet off the ground, they struck a tree which seared off the left side of the aircraft, according to the National Transportation Safety Board, which released a preliminary report on the crash — something Beasley believes may have saved his life. 

“If we would have landed without interference, I think maybe we would have rolled that plane many times in the field because it’s a cow field, it’s not very smooth, and planes aren’t exactly known for their suspensions,” Beasley said. 

When the plane hit the ground, Beasley was slammed against the dashboard, resulting in a concussion, several broken rips, lacerations in his face, a possible bruised lung, and an air pocket between his chest and lung. He also lost four pints of blood in the ordeal. The force was so severe that his face broke the steel yoke of the aircraft, Beasley said.

His nephew suffered a broken hand, and a compression fracture in his back.

Beasley recalls being in and out of consciousness after the crash. He remembers hearing his nephew call out to him and telling his nephew to get up as he was lying face down in a cow pasture. He also remembers joking with the EMTs on the way to the hospital.

According to the Union County Sherriff’s Office, Nathan was airlifted to Atrium Hospital in Charlotte while Beasley was transported by ambulance.

The aircraft involved was a Piper PA-28 registered to JTS Aircraft LLC, a company based out of South Carolina. It first received its airworthiness certification in 1969, was overhauled in 2016 and passed its annual inspection as recently as Dec. 2025, according to the NTSB. 

Inspection of the aircraft after the accident showed it had no water or debris in the fuel tank, and the engine didn’t have any external signs of catastrophic engine failure. Prior to the accident the airframe had flown 2,200 miles since it was overhauled in 2016. 

Helping Beasley recover from the incident has been his longtime girlfriend, Tina Smith. Smith, who was in Las Vegas on a separate trip quickly rushed to Charlotte and was there within a day of the accident. Beasley said she’s been by his side ever since, helping him manage the pain and healing process.

“I wouldn’t be able to do without her,” Beasley said. “There’s been some bad nights where I can’t sleep, and I’m driving her crazy because she wants to sleep. I thank her so much for that. This has not been easy for her, and she’s just doing it all right now.” 

He’s also grateful for the outpouring of support from friends who have been dropping by with food and even offered to drive to Charlotte to bring him back to New York. 

While Beasley said he’s not afraid of flying, he doesn’t plan on flying in any small planes again — especially not ones made in the 60s. He said his nephew can’t wait to get back in the air despite the accident. 

Beasley said that at no point were either of them afraid they weren’t going to make it. While Beasley said he’s not afraid to die, he wants to be there for his kids and make sure he’s there for them. He said that the biggest message he got from the crash is to hug your loved ones, as cliché as it sounds.

“The things that mean the most to me in life are the simple ones,” Beasley said “It’s easy conversations on a Sunday morning, waking up and having breakfast with people you love. It’s packing my kid’s lunches and helping them with their homework, as aggravating as it might be, planning parties, playing golf trips and going on a boat. Lake George in the summertime. Life’s beautiful.”