Sophia Johnston, formerly known as Sophia Pod, has pleaded not guilty to a civil charge of cruelty to animals that was filed against her when state humane agents removed 11 horses from her property last October.
Johnston purchased the 137-acre property, now called Humble Horse Farm, for $401,000 at a foreclosure auction in May 2010.
On Friday, after Johnston appeared in an Ellsworth courtroom to discuss her availability with prosecutors and Judge Bruce Mallonee, a bench trial in the matter was scheduled for March 6.
Johnston is representing herself in the matter. Attempts Friday to contact her were unsuccessful.
Few details about the case could be found Friday in Hancock County court records, but an official with the state Animal Welfare Program, part of the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, said his office had worked with Johnston for three years to try and address the issue of her horses’ health prior to removing them last fall.
“We received a complaint about the condition and care of the horses and how they were being treated,” Liam Hughes, director of the animal welfare office, said Friday. “They were not being cared for properly.”
Hughes said Johnston attempted to place the horses with a friend just prior to them being removed by the state, but the friend contacted state officials immediately upon taking custody of the animals out of concern for their well-being. The friend, Hughes said, only had the horses for a few hours before he willingly turned them over to state humane agents.
All 11 horses have since been placed with other facilities around the state and their health has improved, Hughes added.
The animal welfare official stressed that people need to assess their capabilities and make sure they have the time and resources to care for horses before they assume responsibility for taking care of any.
“Owning pets, especially horses, is a time consuming and expensive endeavor,” Hughes said. “What kind of owner do they want to be?”
Johnston, who is listed in court records as a Bar Harbor resident, acquired the Route 1 property more than four years ago after it had become embroiled in a criminal case against a former Surry man who was accused of defrauding investors in a Ponzi scheme. Johnston was not involved in the criminal case.
Two months after the foreclosure auction, Eric S. Murphy, the former owner of the stable, was convicted of theft, securities fraud and forgery. He was sentenced by a judge to serve five years behind bars, with another four years suspended, and to repay a total of $358,000 to his former investors.
(Bangor Daily News - Feb 13, 2015)
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