By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
Val Verde County Commissioners Court members this past week discussed a videotaped incident of a man whipping a horse at the county fairgrounds and eventually voted to ban the man and two bystanders from the facility.
“Have there been charges filed on these individuals? All of them? Or just one of them?” County Commissioner Pct. 3 Beau Nettleton asked County Attorney David Martinez at the outset of the discussion.
The questions centered on an ongoing Val Verde County Sheriff’s Office investigation into an April 4 incident at the county fairgrounds that began when a passerby filmed a man methodically whipping a horse tied to a tree.
“My understanding is that the DA (district attorney) is looking at this case,” Martinez answered, adding it is his understanding that charges have been filed on only one individual in the incident.
“Is there any action that can be taken?” Nettleton asked.
“I have not received anything from the sheriff’s office yet,” Martinez said.
“The incident occurred on Monday, and then on Wednesday is when he was picked up?” Owens asked VVSO Lt. Manuel “Manny” Herrera, who attended the meeting for Sheriff Joe Frank Martinez, who was out of town.
“The incident occurred on Monday. They did an investigation the minute the lady called animal control and the sheriff’s office. They did respond immediately. They looked at the horse and everything and basically did their investigation, and then started looking for the individual. The horse was removed Monday night from the fairgrounds by the owner or somebody, and they went to pick him (the horse owner) up in Eagle Pass,” County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. said.
“So they picked up the individual and the horse in Eagle Pass on Wednesday. The minute the horse was brought back, a veterinarian was already on call, so when he came into the fairgrounds, the veterinarian was already there,” the county judge added.
Owens said the horse was found to have “a gash” on its head it didn’t have Monday, an injury the owner claimed occurred when he tried to load the horse into a trailer, and the horse also had “several old scars” on his back and right leg.
“I couldn’t find anything on him where you could say he had been beaten on Monday, but you could tell he had several old scars,” Owens said.
Nettleton asked if the horse’s owner held a lease at the fairgrounds, and Owens replied he does not.
“There’s three people in the video. The guy beating the hell out of the horse, which is the owner, there’s a skinny guy and another guy. The other two guys are apparently the trainer and one of them does the riding,” Owens said.
“When you asked a little while ago, Commissioner Nettleton, what we should do, I think we should have all three of them removed from the fairgrounds, if possible, have criminal trespass charges filed against all three of them and not allow any of those three to ever have horses at the fairgrounds or allowed back on the fairgrounds,” Owens said.
Martinez interjected the county would first have to issue criminal trespass warnings to the three individuals.
“And if they violate that warning, they would be subject to arrest,” Martinez added.
“We can’t file on them for animal abuse, even though they were standing there watching?” Nettleton asked.
Martinez reiterated his office has not seen the results of the investigation by the sheriff’s office.
“The subject was arrested. We got a warrant for him, and he was arrested. He was magistrate, and he has made bond. The horse was seized at the same time we arrested him. We’ve already talked to the other two individuals, and it’s a father and son, by the way, and the father has given us a statement. He’s complying with us. The other one, at this moment, says he didn’t see anything, so the investigation is continuing,” Herrera told the court.
“And the other horses that this individual has?” Nettleton asked.
Herrera said he was told the man owns about 13 other horses.
“What happens to them?” Nettleton asked.
“Right now we’re working with the Texas Racing Commission, and we’re also working with an investigator out of New Mexico. Why are they important? Because they’re looking at the other horses and his (the owner’s) license. Apparently he’s a licensed breeder and he also has, pretty much, a racing license, and they’re taking care of that part. We’re going to be taking care of the criminal part,” Herrera said.
Herrera said he is still waiting on some supplemental reports to be filed before the case is taken to District Attorney Suzanne West for review.
“And if she deems it necessary that the other two are just as responsible as him, then we’ll get warrants for them as well,” Herrera said.
“I think they’re just as responsible, but I’m also concerned about the additional horses this individual owns,” Nettleton said.
Herrera said photos were taken of the other horses, and those photos will be shared with investigators.
“I asked the deputy if he saw any other horses injured or malnourished, and he said no, he did not,” Herrera said.
“I’ve broke horses pretty much all my life, and I’ve never seen anything like that video in my entire life. It was completely disturbing and uncalled-for. I don’t think this individual should even own a horse, but that’s just my personal opinion,” Nettleton said.
“I agree with the judge that they should be banned from the facility completely, but that’s a decision the court will have to make. I just want to make sure this thing doesn’t get lost somewhere, and that the other individuals are held accountable, as well as this individual is held accountable. This is like watching somebody beat someone else up and not doing anything about it. It’s the same principle, and even worse, because the horse couldn’t defend itself,” the commissioner added.
Owens next recognized County Commissioner Pct. 1 Martin Wardlaw.
“I’m a horseman. I’m a lifetime rancher in Val Verde. I’ve never seen a horse abused like this, and at the fairgrounds, I don’t know of this ever happening before. It could have happened. We would not have known this happened if it hadn’t been for the video. Nobody would have known about this. We need surveillance out there. We need law enforcement out there. Not just for the animals, the alcohol. Lots of fussin’ and fightin’ goes on out there, and I support what the judge says: we need to make an example of these violators, these people that do this stuff,” Wardlaw said.
“The only animal abuse we have noticed out there is neglect. Neglect, that’s a horrible thing. When they lock a horse in a stall, and don’t feed it or water it, that comes close to the level of what we just saw on this video,” the commissioner added.
Owens asked Martinez what the court could do as its next step.
Martinez reiterated since none of the three men are fairgrounds tenants, the sheriff’s office could issue formal criminal trespass warnings to each.
“I’ll make a motion that we order the sheriff’s office to file a criminal trespass warning against these three individuals, and that they be banned from the fairgrounds permanently,” Nettleton said.
“I’ll second that motion, with emphasis,” Wardlaw said.
Nettleton added the horse beating is only the latest in a series of ongoing problems at the fairgrounds.
“It has become a huge problem for this county. This type of stuff, drinking, drugs and everything else. It’s gotten completely out of control. It is inexcusable, considering that the individuals that utilize the fairgrounds facility pay little to no money. They run businesses out of there,” Nettleton said.
“We are one of the few counties left in the state of Texas that allow animals to be housed at a fairgrounds without an event going on. I can tell you, my personal opinion, is that everything out there should be gone, and that no animal should be on that fairgrounds unless there is an event. I think that’s what needs to happen,” the commissioner added.
The court voted unanimously to approve Nettleton’s motion.
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