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Penny's Story She was stolen and then recovered. What happens next to the thief and the owner is hard to believe. What do you think about this story and our justice system? |
Horse Theft: Alive and Well in Orange County, North Carolina I have owned Penny, a Palomino mare, for 9 years, ever since she was weaned from her dam. On August 20, 2001, a blonde woman driving a small white station wagon, drove onto the farm where I boarded Penny. Penny was out in a large pasture, enjoying the sunshine with a large group of mares. I tried to get the woman's attention, but she would not stop and speak with me. She turned her car around and drove out of the farm. That night, Penny disappeared. When I went out to check the horses the next morning, I found the chain used to secure the gate hanging on the fence. The gate was closed, though, so I was not alarmed. Then I realized Penny was not in the pasture. All the other mares were accounted for, but Penny was gone. Frantically, I searched the pasture on foot, then by truck. Penny was not there. There was no sign of broken or loose fencing. I went home and called the Orange County APS to see if someone had reported a loose horse. Then I called the Orange County Sheriff's Department and reported Penny as missing. The deputy answering my call took some notes, examined the scene, took statements from me and my friend who was leasing the farm, and stated that it 'looked to him like a case of horse rustling.' He filed a report and told me that an investigator would be assigned to my case. The next few days were a hellish nightmare. Friends and I posted flyers in local businesses, telephoned horse auctions, veterinarians, and farriers, and visited stockyards in search of Penny. Penny's picture and information was placed on several stolen horse sites on the Internet. I received messages of support from as far away as New Zealandpeople around the world were watching for Penny! I was unable to eat or sleep. My grief I felt was all-consuming. I was interviewed by Fox 8 News, and the Burlington Times News ran a story about Penny's theft. The Times News story ran on Saturday, August 25, 2001. That afternoon, August 25, I received a call that Penny had been found. I was given an address and was told there were deputies on the site, waiting for me. I grabbed my notebook with Penny's papers, vet records, and pictures while my husband hooked up our truck and trailer. When we arrived, there was my beautiful Penny. I flung my arms around her neck and cried. After I composed myself, the deputy began to examine my documents and pictures to verify Penny's ownership. One of the pictures had a processing stamp on the back with a date: May 1995. The deputy then introduced the woman who had been sitting behind him as the person who took Penny. It was the woman I'd seen driving through the farm! I told the deputy this and immediately stated that I wanted her prosecuted. The deputy informed me that he had been on the phone with the county legal counsel, and I may NOT be able to prosecute her. When I demanded to know why not, the most incredible story was told to me. According to the woman, THREE YEARS AGO, she had left a horse 'who looked just like Penny' at the farm where I boarded Penny. She then moved to Texas and left no forwarding address or phone number with the person who was leasing the farm at that time. The woman further stated that she had 'forgotten' the location of the farm where she'd left her horse. She said she was driving around in the area on August 20 looking for a mobile home that was advertised in the paper when things 'started looking familiar.' She drove onto the farm and saw Penny. The woman left the farm, drove to a local feed mill and asked the owner for the name of someone whom she could hire to transport a horse. She was given the name of a local resident. That evening, after everyone was gone from the barn, she and the person with the trailer met at the farm, loaded my horse onto the trailer, and drove away with her. The person who had been hired to transport my horse saw the newspaper story and telephoned the Orange County Sheriff's Department. It is the position of Carl Fox, the Orange County District Attorney, that the woman showed 'no criminal intent' when she removed MY horse from the farm, since she 'thought' she was removing her own horse. It was of no interest to Mr. Fox that the horse the woman left, aside from being a Palomino, looked nothing like my horse. It made no difference to him that the woman had abandoned her horse for three years. It didn't matter to him that she had been back in the area for almost a year before she decided to come onto the farm and take my horse. In the District Attorney's eyes, no crime was committed, since there was no 'criminal intent.' He refused to prosecute. I feel the system has failed me miserably. I was the victim, yet the system bent over backward to protect the person who took Penny. I am eternally grateful to the many friends who united to help me get Penny home. I am grateful to the deputies who met with me, watched for Penny on their rounds, and treated me with compassion. But, the person who took Penny is free to try the same tactics again on someone else. The precedent has been set, and the message is loud and clear: You can steal a horse in Orange County and not be prosecuted. |
STOLEN HORSE INTERNATIONAL |
