Marengo County court officials said today that 52-year-old Henry Lewis of rural Dixons Mills is set to stand trial July 11th. Lewis entered the plea during a hearing Tuesday in Linden.
Authorities said four women saw the man having sex with a six-week-old horse in a field in early May and tried to stop him. Lewis refused and was gone when they came back with another man.
Alabama is among 15 states that lack a law expressly prohibiting sex with animals, according to Stephanie Bell, a caseworker with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
Alabama law does make it a crime to kill or hurt an animal that belongs to someone else, or to subject an animal to cruel mistreatment. But District Attorney Greg Griggers said the case is questionable because the pony was not examined for injuries after its death.
If convicted, Lewis could be sentenced to a six month jail term and fined up to one-thousand dollars. Dixon Mill is located in south Marengo County.
(WFSA - Jun 12, 2006)