The man, 20-year-old Marvin Sensenig of Ephrata, pleaded guilty to two summary counts of animal cruelty in front of a borough district judge on Monday.
The charges carry more than $700 in fines and court costs, online records show. No jail time has been ordered.
The case drew widespread attention and provoked widespread outrage after a bystander posted her account of the incident to Facebook.
The post belonged to Tawn Crowther of Lancaster and has been shared tens of thousands of times since it was posted to her page last week.
According to Crowther's account, she watched as Sensenig "walked beside the horse and beat it until it fell to the [ground]," adding "At that point he continued to kick, hit and pull on the poor seemingly dying animal. I pulled over and called the police."
They came to evaluate the situation, only to tell me that they are unsure of the outcome. Because Amish are governed under a different law. Are you kidding? Isn't abuse standard across the board? So if I decide to beat and kill animals I need to change my religion to be above the law?!? Are you telling me the police are powerless against the Amish?!?
Her post includes still frames from a video that appears to show a man in Plain Sect clothing, likely Sensenig, leaning over a horse in a roadway.
According to a police account, "Sensenig used one horse to pull a farm wagon with a burden too great for a single horse. The horse became overheated due to the hot temperatures and collapsed onto the asphalt."
It continues: "Sensenig then was seen kicking the horse in the abdomen and the back of the head, and punching the horse in the head."
The incident was reported at Bethany Road near Brossman Road in the borough around noon on Tuesday, Aug. 2.
Officers arriving at the scene said they found the horse lying in the roadway and a bystander claiming the horse's handler, later identified as Sensenig, had beaten the animal after it failed to pull a load of watermelons and two grown men up the road.
Fire officials sprayed the animal with water in an attempt to keep it cool, but the decision was ultimately made to euthanize the horse. Court documents say the animal died "as a result of the conditions created by [Sensenig]."
With Sensenig's guilty plea entered there is no further action scheduled in the case. It is not clear if his guilty plea will impact his ability to own animals in the future.
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| Police issued a statement denying that the officer said Amish don't have to abide by the law. So they're calling the witness a liar. |
In Pennsylvania, a summary offense carries a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and a $300 fine, while an animal cruelty summary count carries up to 90 days in jail and a fine of up to $750, the SPCA reports.
The Lancaster County District Attorney's Office gave the following
"There is nothing inappropriate about the disposition in this case. The legislature has determined these crimes are among the lowest graded offenses - summary citations. Summaries can carry maximum 90-day prison sentences, but prison is rarely ordered, particularly when dealing with first-time offenders who take immediate responsibility. We did not request prison; rather, left it at the discretion of the judge."
Shame on you Lancaster County.
(PennLive - August 11, 2016)
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