No Criminal Charges Against Owner of Horse North of Christie
Monday, February 18th, 2019 -- 1:41 PM
-No criminal charges have been filed against a Greenwood man who owns a horse on Highway 73.Harold Heck owns property just north of Christie on Highway 73 and has a horse on his property. The horse has been the source of social media outrage as it’s often seen out in the elements, chained to an old vehicle axel with limited space to move around in. People have offered to purchase the horse or build it a shelter. Heck has refused stating the horse gets plenty of food and water and is only chained because it can’t see well. Residents were also concerned because they claim that Heck has stated he’s only keeping the horse to make people angry and has even threatened to kill the animal to make them very angry. The Clark County Sheriff’s Department performed a welfare check on the animal back in 2017 and found the horse was healthy and well fed. They returned to check on the animal again last month after a lawyer took up the case on behalf of those who had filed a petition seeking criminal charges against Heck.
The department, again, found the horse had a shelter and was well fed and healthy. Last week, a Clark County Judge decided not to file criminal charges against the owner. The judge stated, “the court concludes that prosecution is not warranted and that the evidence available is insufficient to support a conviction. Therefore, the court does not permit the filing of criminal charges in this case as requested by the Petitioners. The Petitioners’ request is denied.” Heck’s lawyer and the Clark County Sheriff’s Office remind residents that social media may contain inaccuracies, rumors or gossip and you should treat the information obtained from social media sources accordingly until proven otherwise. Making false statements or allegations against someone is serious and may have legal consequences.”
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