Quincy - 19 Horses Impounded
June 17th, 2007
by Linda Gordon
19 horses were removed from the property of Lawrence Wietholder and his wife Joann, March 15th, 2005 by the Department of Agriculture. HARPS was asked to take on the responsibility for the hauling, housing, medical care and feeding of the malnourished and neglected animals at the west branch farm near Moline, owned and run by HARPS volunteer state-approved humane investigators with over twenty years experience. Less than one year before that, the owner of these horses was found guilty of a charge of unlawful disposal of dead animals by the Adams County States Attorney's Office. He was ordered to allow open inspections upon all of his property by the Illinois Department of Agriculture inspectors to verify compliance with the law. State employees have been keeping record of the number of violations for the past years and have found him to be in violation of the Illinois Humane Care for Animals Act, with numerous incidences of failure to provide humane care and treatment, adequate food, water and shelter as well as failure to provide veterinary care and treatment of injured animals.
by Linda Gordon
19 horses were removed from the property of Lawrence Wietholder and his wife Joann, March 15th, 2005 by the Department of Agriculture. HARPS was asked to take on the responsibility for the hauling, housing, medical care and feeding of the malnourished and neglected animals at the west branch farm near Moline, owned and run by HARPS volunteer state-approved humane investigators with over twenty years experience. Less than one year before that, the owner of these horses was found guilty of a charge of unlawful disposal of dead animals by the Adams County States Attorney's Office. He was ordered to allow open inspections upon all of his property by the Illinois Department of Agriculture inspectors to verify compliance with the law. State employees have been keeping record of the number of violations for the past years and have found him to be in violation of the Illinois Humane Care for Animals Act, with numerous incidences of failure to provide humane care and treatment, adequate food, water and shelter as well as failure to provide veterinary care and treatment of injured animals.
In late August of 2006 Mr. Wietholder was sentenced to 30 months of probation and fined $15,5000. for felony and misdemeanor animal abuse, and spent 50 days in the Adams County Jail for violating terms of a previous bond.
SEPTEMBER 29, 2006 Mr. Wietholder
was taken into custody and charged with second-degree murder for allegedly
drowning his wife at their home in Greentop, Missouri. He is being held in
Kirksville Mo., with bail set at $5 million.
(Information gathered from the Quad City Times).