Greene County racehorse owner Ernie Paragallo was found guilty today on 33 counts of animal cruelty, a year after a raid on his farm found 177 sick and starving horses. He faces up to two years in prison and $33,000 in fines--for comparison, that's less than the average price of a Thoroughbred at auction.
Blood Horse says Paragallo "hired the right attorney."
Paragallo claimed he had no way of knowing the horses were not being cared for.
His attorney, Michael Howard, was quoted after the verdict as saying, “This requires a horse owner to take on a very high level of burden.”...
...Anyone who doesn't want to assume that "burden" should neither own nor train a horse.
Thoroughbred breeder (and newspaperman) Glenn Craven says:
I hope he gets every day and pays every penny. And I agree with ESPN's Bill Finley and others that now, post-conviction, Ernie Paragallo must be banned from racing forever.
John Sabini, chairman of the New York Racing and Wagering Board, told Blood Horse:
"All of us involved in the regulation of pari-mutuel wagering have a duty to ensure that the horrendous conditions found at Center Brook Farm in April 2009 never again manifest themselves in the barns and pastures of New York State."
