Thursday, December 6, 2007

Loose Horses - $315 later...

Let's hear it for McHenry County Department of Health. They are really on the job, diligent, watching out for us, doing their jobs. Yeah, sure...

Last week three horses got loose somewhere along Route 47 north of Woodstock. There they must have been; trotting down the road. Maybe not even in the road.

Somebody rats them out. Somebody shows up and lassoes them. Somebody hauls them to the Hooved Animal Humane Society. Fortunately, before they could be sold or adopted out (or worse), a neighbor of the owner learned of their whereabouts and informed the owner.

Does all this deserve $50 tickets for "allowing an animal to run at large"? Plus $55 per horse for the County to retrieve them? Did, in fact, the County round them up and transport them to HAHS? If it did, the cost to the taxpayers was certainly higher than $55/horse.

One thing is certain. I don't even have to know the owner. The owner did NOT "allow" his animals to run at large.The horses got out of a fenced pasture. Animals do that. It's rare for horses to escape. I recall one day in Colorado when I came upon two cars stopped on a highway like Route 47, and the drivers were chasing a horse out of the road. I had a lead rope in the car, as I do today, and I walked up to the horse and snapped it on his halter. Pretty soon someone showed up and knew where the horse belonged. There was no need to call the cops or the County or anyone else. You just took care of it.

The ticket and "handling charge" (no pun intended) were unnecessary. This is what happens when the bureaucrats take over and common sense is left behind. I hope the owner will fight the tickets, plead Not Guilty, ask for a jury trial and totally embarrass the County in court.

Unfortunately, the way it is around here, it's very expensive to fight a ticket and lose. A person is almost coerced into paying even an unfair ticket. The court costs will double or triple the fine. Add the cost for your attorney, if you feel you cannot defend yourself, and pretty soon you're talking about real money.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Pretty lenient viewpoint from "Every accident is someones fault and deserves a ticket Gus". Have you turned over a new leaf? A kinder, gentler more human Gus? Maybe we only have to decimate.

Anonymous said...

So let me see if I understand this Frank. Everybody should get a ticket, "no warnings", unless it's something you do wrong or something that YOU don't think they should get a ticket for. Ok, got it.

Gus said...

Neigh, neigh. The horses should have been ticketed, not the owner who didn't know they had gotten out. Haul them into court, and let them present evidence in the courtroom. Phew! That stinks! Case dismissed.