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Posted on Wednesday, Apr 26, 2000 - 4:42 pm:

I have recently had a horse stolen from me. I was told by the person I boarded with that the mare had died from colic. I later found out that the owner of the place where I boarded the mare had moved her to another location. I am going out there today with a sheriff, livestock rep, and a vet. Hopefully, we can get it cleared up. My question is:
Isn't this a felony offense? If it was a car, the person would be arrested if they were in possession of it. However, it doesn't sound like they will be pressing charges against her. I want to, but do not know what to expect. Has anyone dealt with this type of situation?
Thanks

Posted on Wednesday, Apr 26, 2000 - 8:49 pm:

What is it that we used to do with horse thieves? I don't know your state, but theft of property in excess of a certain dollar amount is a felony. It is criminal. As I noted I do not know your exact circumstances, but you might want to get the racsal to confirm in front of the sheriff that he previously told you the horse died. If it were me I might take a small tape recorder to use to tape the "session". You never know where the sheriff's in laws are hidden.

Posted on Thursday, Apr 27, 2000 - 10:00 am:

Yes. I am in Arizona, and it is still a "hanging offense" here. The good news is that we have a tape of her telling us our horse died. We also got her out of there safely last night with the help of the sheriff, brand inspector, vet and two equine psychology experts. She appears alright, but was apparently bred while with them. We are planning on pressing charges, but are unsure if we need to retain a lawyer, etc. We were mostly concentrating on getting her out of there safely. I guess we need to go into the police dept to file charges. Any idea on the procedure?

Posted on Thursday, Apr 27, 2000 - 11:53 am:

Wow! I am glad everyone is safe, including your horse!I would definitely file charges at the local prosecutor's office; not with cops; but directly swear out complaint at DA's office (unless they force you to go through police; just another piece of red tape.)You can go diorectly for a Bill of Indictment in many states.
If there was anyone else participating in the tape recording I would get a notarized statement from them verifyingthe facts and circumstances, date and etc of the recording. Same with your vet who went on the retrieval episode. Use these both as support and evidence if needed later.

You could get the other party to understand that you are pursuing legal consequences. Note, however, that after winning in court, you still have to collect any damages which can be quite a process if they want to make it into one.

Perhaps you can get the other party to agree to mediation/arbitration through Equine Dispute Resolution Service, www.equinedispute.org., and for several thousand dollars less get some financial settlement on all matters: theft, foal, etc.
Sorry for your circumstances. If interested we can arrange for a letter requesting mediation be sent to your "great American" horse person.

Posted on Thursday, Apr 27, 2000 - 7:35 pm:

Since I live in AZ I'm just curious where this took place? What town, I mean?

Posted on Friday, Apr 28, 2000 - 5:40 pm:

New River, AZ is where it occurred.

I would love to learn more about the letter requesting mediation, except I am so angry, I can barely stand the thought of seeing them. I was mostly wondering where to file charges, so that helps tremendously. Apparently, this is not the first time for them. I am preparing a detailed report for the branding inspector, which he said would stay on file. I am not sure if he actually cited them for theft, but he implied that he planned too. I am just really nervous about the entire deal. I want to make sure that they can't do this again to anyone else, but the Dept of Ag doesn't appear to worried. (Although they were very nice at the moment). This gives me some guidance on where to go. Anything else you could suggest would be very much appreciated as well. Also, could I get into any trouble for discussing this online??? (as long as I don't mention names)?

Posted on Friday, Apr 28, 2000 - 6:45 pm:

Wow, New River! I've heard things about New River, but this takes the cake! I'm outside Scottsdale east of Cave Creek..
Do they need a permit in New River to run a boarding facility? If so, do they actually have one? If not, you could report them also for that activity which would not be legal, and this perhaps would lead to their operation being shut down, theoretically anyway.

Posted on Monday, May 1, 2000 - 10:28 am:

I'm not sure if a permit is required or not. Do you board horses where you're at? I just moved her down near Pinnacle Peak. It is a beatiful facility, and they are taking great care of her. Also, I spoke to some past boarders of hers, and it looks like they are angry enough with the care their horses received to join in a class action suit against her. She also had livestock called on her by two neighbors for neglect on her own horses. (That happened Friday). Hopefully, one of the above will take effect soon!

Posted on Monday, May 1, 2000 - 6:58 pm:

My horses are boarded at a great place just a mile from where I live, so we can keep close eyes on them. (However, I trust the owners completely).
Unfortunately even if your lady gets complaints against her it won't necessarily put her out of business. Arizona is a strange place......
I'm glad you found a nice place. We're about 10 miles east of Pinnacle Peak. If you'd like to communicate about more detailed stuff why don't you E mail me at earlyspring@uswest.net.
Pam

Posted on Tuesday, May 2, 2000 - 1:09 pm:

Just a thought...if these people have abused or neglected their animals, why not call in the local chapter of the Humane Society? Frequently the humane society will remove the animals and then prosecute the owners, depending upon the severity of the case. Although the Humane Society won't be able to help you with your case, they may be able to put these people out of business so that something like that can never happen again.
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