NEWS &VIEWSSweeny & Dorsey Unable to Satisfy Court in Petition for Return of Horses On Wednesday July 31, Anne Arundel
County District Court Judge Megan Johnson denied petitions by Donald Sweeney and Leah Dorsey to have eight of their horses and ponies returned to them.
The Timeline On June 4, Anne Arundel County Animal
Control impounded four horses and fi ve ponies (and several goats) from Severn Stables on Upton Road after Sweeney’s veterinarian T omas Jett recommended that the animals be removed because of ongoing neglect. T e animals were seized and placed with a licensed rescue stable. On June 11, Sweeney and Dorsey fi led separate petitions in Anne Arundel County District Court against Animal Control to have their animals returned, and from there the case progressed steadily through the courts. During this time, a very public battle erupted when Dorsey and Sweeney took their story public through Facebook to tell their side of the story. Stories also appeared in or on WJZ
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Channel 13, WBAL Channel 11, WUSA Channel 9, Eye on Annapolis, Odenton Patch and T e Capital Gazette. T e Equiery also reported on the seizure, but
the research for the article did not progress in the usual manner. Generally, owners of horses who have been seized by government authorities are unwilling to speak with equine media, unlike the various State’s Attorneys and Animal Control offi cers. But Dorsey and Sweeney were quite willing to talk with us, and not so the representatives of the government. We were troubled by the unwillingness of Anne Arundel County Animal Control to return our calls. T e State’s Attorney offi ce eventually did return our calls after our press date; Assistant State’s Attorney Kim DiPietro has been accessible since then. Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney has up to a year to fi le charges of criminal neglect. On July 25, Leah Dorsey appeared before Judge Johnson with several requests. One, her request to include her father, Ronald Phelp, as co-owner and co-petitioner on several of the horses, was approved. Another requested a change of venue, and was denied after County Attorney William Dunlap (representing Anne Arundel County Animal Control) who was able to submit Facebook postings by Dorsey complaining about Judge Johnson, who presided over a custody hearing in which Dorsey was involved several years ago. Another asked for a continuance in order to obtain counsel. T is request was granted, as was a request by the county that the Sweeney and Dorsey cases be joined (and therefore heard) together, as the majority of the evidence and the witnesses were the same for each. T e county requested that at least a half day, but preferably a full day, be set aside for the hearing because of the number of witnesses. T is request was likewise granted.
The Petitioners State Their Case When the parties gathered again the
following week in Judge Johnson’s courtroom, the plaintiff s (Sweeney and Dorsey) were now represented by Chestertown Attorney David Wright. Wright immediately withdrew the Sweeney/Dorsey petition to have the horse known as Hope returned to them. Of the animals seized on June 4, Hope was in the worst condition, and the only animal in which both Sweeney and Dorsey claimed an ownership stake, as well as Ron Phelps. Sweeney was not pursuing return of the goats.
Once the judge granted the amendment to the petition, Wright immediately moved to have the Sweeney and Dorsey cases severed, noting that since Hope was not part of the request, there was no reason for the cases to be heard together. William Dunlap vigorously opposed the motion citing judicial effi ciency, and the judge denied the motion. T e judge and the attorneys had to sort
out the set of rules under which the petitions would be heard, given the apparent oddity of the statutes, and whether to use the evidentiary standards for small claims or large claims. Equiery readers should remember that the county has not (at least not yet) fi led charges against Sweeney and Dorsey, and that Sweeney and Dorsey are petitioning for return of the animals. T us Sweeney and Dorsey are the plaintiff s, and Animal Control is the defendant. Once it was agreed that none of the animals had an individual value in excess of $5,000, it was agreed to use the evidentiary standards for small claims court, and which would also allow for a De Novo appeal if either of the parties are unhappy with the judge’s rulings. Once the preliminaries were resolved, both
attorneys agreed to waive opening statements and the hearing began, with attorney Wright walking fi rst Leah Dorsey, then Donald Sweeney, through testimony about why the horses should be returned. Both Dorsey and Sweeney testifi ed about the ownership and care of the horses, and the county’s prior involvement with Severn Stables. T ey believed they had complied with all that Animal Control had requested. T e only witness presented by the petitioners was Jules Smith, owner of the Maryland Renaissance Festival, who testifi ed that he had been hiring the Sweeney family to provide pony rides since 1981, but in the last few years, following the death of Sweeney’s father (Donald Senior), the relationship had deteriorated, as he found it harder and harder to get in touch with the younger Sweeney. Smith testifi ed that, although he once thought the ponies looked bloated when he visited the Severn Farm, always at the festival the Sweeneys presented ponies that appeared to be generally healthy and well fed. Smith reported that he had never had any complaints about the condition of the Sweeney ponies.
The County Objects
After Wright rested his case, Dunlap moved that the Dorsey/Sweeney requests be dismissed, noting that the law assumes that the actions of Animal Control are correct, and therefore the petitioners have the burden of proof. Dunlap argued that the petitioners had not provided enough evidence that they were
capable
of providing adequate care for the horses. T e judge denied the petition. T e county proceeded, calling as its fi rst witness a former Severn Stables employee, Lauren Umblandt, who had fi led the initial complaint in January. Umblant was followed by veterinarian Rich
Forfa, who had conducted the entrance exams on the horses shortly after their arrival at the rescue facility, Days End Farm Horse Rescue in Howard County. Forfa was followed by DEFHR Assistant Executive Director Erin Ochoa; Field Investigator Crystal Dowd for Anne Arundel County Animal Control; Dr. continued on page 93
SEPTEMBER 2013 | THE EQUIERY | 9
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