Owners of starving horses arrested for animal cruelty, police say

Owners of starving horses arrested for animal cruelty, police say


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UTAH COUNTY — A couple of horse owners in the midst of a heated lawsuit with a ranch owner were arrested for suspicion of animal cruelty Friday.

Utah County Sheriff's Office arrested Trudy Childs and her son Rory Childs on 101 potential counts of suspicion of animal cruelty, and another potential 31 counts of suspicion of livestock at large after a KSL story led investigators to the horses, which were reportedly starving, neglected and left in the extreme cold.

A court date for the Childs has been set for Tuesday.

The Childs run Smokey Mountain Ranch near Spanish Fork and Mapleton. To cut ranch costs last year, they signed a contract with Justin Barrow, of Barrow Land and Livestock in Weber County, to feed and keep 100 horses.

Both sides claim the other party violated the contract: the Childs claim Barrow didn't take good care of the horses, while Barrow claims he did and the Childs took the horses without being paid according to their contract. The Childs and Barrow have filed lawsuits against one another.

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Alex Cabrero

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