8 horses sold to alleged abuser's family

UKIAH - Three months after being rescued from starvation, eight of 36 horses seized by Mendocino County Animal Control officials have been sold to a man related to their alleged abuser.

The sale has angered the volunteers who helped confiscate the animals and nurse them back to health.

"All the work, all the suffering of those animals and they've put them right back in hell," said Pam Gagliardo, who blames the county for not uncovering the information prior to the sale.

Mark Scripter of Newbury Park, brother-in-law of Westport resident James DeNoyer, bought the horses at auction. DeNoyer is awaiting trial on 36 counts of animal cruelty, one for each of the ailing horses seized from his Westport ranch and a pasture near Branscomb in late December.

District Attorney Norm Vroman said he believes DeNoyer is thumbing his nose at the law and the county and he's ready to do something about it.

"From all appearances, he masterminded" the purchase, he said of DeNoyer.

If so, it could be a violation of DeNoyer's bail agreement, which included a contingency that he stay away from the horses, Vroman said.

There is no indication that the horses are currently at risk or being mistreated. Neither DeNoyer nor Scripter returned phone calls seeking comment about the sale.

Vroman said he will ask a judge Tuesday to either revoke or raise DeNoyer's bail and to hold him in contempt of court.

Deputy District Attorney Emily Brinkman said the bail could increase from the current $50,000 to as much as $540,000.

Vroman blames county officials for selling the horses to DeNoyer's family.

"Animal Control and Public Health screwed it up," he said, adding that it took one of his investigators only 10 minutes to connect Scripter with DeNoyer.

He said Brinkman had offered to be on the panel overseeing the horse sale, but was turned down.

If she had been on the panel, she would not have ignored the red flags raised by Scripter's bid, Vroman said. Scripter had never owned horses before, yet he bid on 21 of the 32 animals that were for sale. He chose the eight with the best pedigrees, Vroman said.

"If they'd found out the guy had never had a horse in his life and they sold him eight, wouldn't that make them concerned?" Vroman said.

Public Health Director Carol Mordhorst, who oversees Animal Control, defended the sales process.

"The only thing I can say is hindsight is 20-20," she said.

A panel of three people - two veterinarians and a volunteer - went over the applications before she approved them, Mordhorst said.

She said they were concerned about selling so many horses to Scripter, but could find no reason to deny him.

Prior horse ownership was not a condition of the sale, Mordhorst said.

She said the panel checked with the Ventura County boarding facility, where the horses now are, to ensure Scripter had made arrangements to properly care for the horses, Mordhorst said.

And, even if he'd revealed he was related to DeNoyer, Mordhorst said that likely would not have stopped the sale.

"I don't think we could deny them just because they're a relative," she said.