Facts distorted in horse case
Dear editor,
I felt compelled to write a response to the letter by Pam Jarvis that was printed in the April 22, 2008, Brooklyn Exponent.
I became involved in this case on April 10, 2007 while donating hay -- and her facts are grossly distorted. This has dragged on for over a year and it is well overdue for trial. Jackson County bungled this case from the beginning. Many of the "facts" she brings up have already been voluntarily recanted by Jackson County Prosecutors and Animal Control.
What they told Pam is what they were telling the press. Anything to get they public's sympathy, support and donations. Now that the old prosecuting attorney has been "relocated" and a senior attorney has taken it on, he is trying his best to ascertain damage control.
Judge Schmucker is currently considering dropping all felony charges. (note: charges were indeed dismissed on 4/30) Is it really justification for taking everything these two men had over a possible pending misdemeanor charge?
One has to personally own and raise livestock to understand the situation. Is Pam a livestock owner?
Syringes are used to vaccinate livestock -- I'd be more concerned if I didn't find any on a farm of that size.
A dead horse cannot be buried in winter (frozen ground) -- a rendering truck had already been called and the carcass was moved to the driveway for pick up.
Hay, grain and water were on the premises.
Two elderly horses and one sick one were very thin. That happens with the old and sick -- and they were already separated and being fed extra before AC came in.
The hip problem with one horse occurred after AC took over -- horse was trampled by the others when AC was only feeding one round bale to a herd of 40 plus horses and they were fighting over it.
The horse with wire embedded had an appointment with the vet on March 17th that Mr. Mercier had to cancel because JCAC would not let him "remove" the horse for care, then they took 3 more weeks to get him in to a vet after the county seizure.
A 5 x 7 foot stall never existed on the premises.
Animal Control and Leelanau brought in some of the items that were donated, the money and many donated items "disappeared".
Incidentally, after numerous requests in writing to Leelanau Horse Rescue, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, I was never given a receipt for my large donation. I'd love to see a list of donations, because my name and what I gave is nowhere on it.
Animal Control did not give a 10, 15 or 30 day notice to make improvements to their specifications.
Stalking charges? What a joke, all were laughed out of court for lack of justification to begin with. No assault ever took place and there were never any charges filed for such. What a waste of taxpayer dollars.
And what of the infamous "black chopper" that Officer Wheaton stated under oath that these two men were flying and was hovering over the farm in Grass Lake? One of many ridiculous accusations under sworn testimony that was sheepishly recanted by JCAC.
A short visit to www.GLHorsetruth.com would clear up all these misconceptions. All the trial transcripts are there, along with pictures that JCAC took immediately after the seizure of overweight horses with recently trimmed or shod feet.
Did you see any of the pictures taken at the auctions? Let's talk about atrocious.
I bought a Turn 3 horse at the September auction in Napoleon. It only took me 3 weeks to de-worm and put weight on his skinny frame. His spine, ribs and hip bones were prominent and his feet hadn't been done at all in the 6 months they had him. I have 'before' and 'after' pictures. This horse did not look this bad in April, 2007. How could I do in 3 weeks what the "experts" couldn't even maintain in six months?
Animal Control is not knowledgeable enough about livestock to attempt to maintain a herd of this size. They bit off way more than they could chew and they did these horses a grave injustice. They were in worse shape at the auctions than they were at seizure. Small wonder they were in such a rush to auction them off before winter set in. If they were unable to keep weight on or properly maintain these horses over the easy summer months, imagine how many dead horses in the driveway we would have seen this spring.
Thus far, these men have not been convicted of anything. Not even a misdemeanor charge.
It "saddens and frightens me" that if I have one sick animal out of 20, that the government can storm in, seize my personal property (trucks, trailers, saddles, computers, clothing, tools, etc) along with the remainder of my livestock and sell it all before I'd have my day in court.
If Pam believes everything she reads in the papers and was told by JCAC, maybe there's a bridge in Brooklyn she'd be interested in buying.
Kathy Brown, Brooklyn
Way to go, K.B.! Amazing how the witness testimony of people who were actually there differs from the testimony of those who were apparently told what to say by the prosecution, hmmm?
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