Malnourished horses spark abuse investigation
This video is no longer available.
LAUDERDALE COUNTY, Tenn. — Two agencies are investigating claims of animal abuse after a handful of malnourished horses were discovered in Gates, Tenn. On July 17, a caller complained to the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Office that about five to six horses whose ribs and bones are showing were at a location on 4th Street in Gates. The horses belong to Investigator Mark Crook with the Ripley Police Department, according to a press release from sheriff Steve Sanders. Animal Control and Rescues and UT Martin Extension Office were alerted of the situation. J.C. Dupree with the UT Martin Extension Office is investigating the alleged abuse and will turn in any charges to Mike Dunavant, District Attorney General for the 25th Judicial District of Tennessee. According to a press release from Sanders, cases involving older and abused animals are quite common. “This is not an isolated case involving older and abused animals; these cases are really quite common,” Sanders wrote. “Had this not been an election year, I feel this would not have created all this attention.”
