UPDATED: Hebron Horse Owner Sentenced
Image courtesy Wicomico County State’s Attorney
UPDATED – 5-13-19 – The woman who was indicted for criminal animal abuse will not spend time in prison. On Monday, Barbara Pilchard was sentenced to 90 days for each of the six horses that died as a result of abuse and neglect on her farm. Judge Leah Seaton suspended all of Pilchard’s time and placed her on five years of supervised probation. Special conditions were also placed on Pilchard including mental health treatment. She was ordered to not have care and custody of any animal. Judge Seaton also fined Pilchard $1000 for each of the thirteen horses that she was convicted of abusing and neglecting. Last month Pilchard was found guilty of 39 counts of misdemeanor animal abuse and neglect of thirteen horses. In March of 2018, the Wicomico County Sheriff’s office and County Animal Control investigated the abuse and neglect of dozens of horses found living in extreme conditions, malnourised and neglected on Pilchard’s Cherry Walk Road farm.
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A Hebron woman has been indicted on 16 counts of felony aggravated animal cruelty and 48 misdemeanor counts of animal abuse and neglect.Ā The Wicomico County State’s Attorney’s office say Barbara Pilchard’s Indictment was issued as a criminal summons.Ā The State requested and the Court ordered as pretrial conditions that Pilchard have no animals, domesticated, livestock or otherwise, in her possession or under her control or responsibility, and that she have no contact with the horses she surrendered which were rescued from her care and custody.
The Wicomico County State’s Attorney has filed the charges against Pilchard after allegations of animal abuse and neglect on her horse farm were received in March.Ā Investigation found 98 live horses on her Cherry Walk Road farm in unlivable conditions ā they have since been surrendered and are in the care of rescue organizations.
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