Superior court judge dismisses animal cruelty case involving miniature horses
Just under two years after a Burke County District Court judge convicted a woman on nine counts of animal cruelty, a Buncombe County Superior Court judge dismissed the case on Monday, July 28, before it ever went before a jury.
Judge Steven Warren dismissed Drexel native Julie Ann Sherrill’s case based on a pretrial motion filed by Sherrill’s defense council claiming the case fell under a statutory exemption in North Carolina’s animal cruelty law, said Assistant District Attorney Mitch Walker.
Sherrill, now 56, was convicted by Burke County District Court Judge Scott Conrad on Sept. 1, 2023, according to a previous article in The Paper. She was represented in district court and superior court by Morganton-based attorney Victor Yamouti.
Walker said judges Conrad and Warren reached different conclusions based on the same statute.
Forty-nine miniature horses and 39 chickens were seized from Sherrill by Burke County Animal Control on Jan. 18, 2023. Sherrill was arrested and charged with 23 counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty on Jan. 23, 2023.
One of the horses seized upon intake in January 2023.
All of the animals were placed in foster homes. While in the foster homes, two of the 10 pregnant miniature horses miscarried their foals, and all of the chickens were euthanized after an infectious disease was found in the flock.
State statute G.S. 14-360 dictates what is and is not considered animal cruelty. According to court documents, the case was dismissed because Sherrill’s activities fall under G.S. 14-360(c)(2), which states an exemption for, “lawful activities conducted for purposes of biomedical research or training or for purposes of production of livestock, poultry, or aquatic species.”
Walker said horses are categorized as livestock.
Sherrill appealed the district court verdict as a matter of rights, Walker said.
“The way the law is here in this state, if someone’s convicted in district court, you can appeal just as a matter of right,” Walker said. “You don’t even have to have specific grounds for appeal.”
Attempts to reach Sherrill were unsuccessful.
“We’re so happy (with the outcome),” said Sherrill’s father, Wilson Sherrill. “It’s been two-and-a-half years ago when they came in and just had the sheriff … come in with a warrant, and then they started grabbing all the horses. She had some chickens, they grabbed them. They said that she’s no longer able to have any animals, and that just broke her heart.”
Wilson said the miniature horses were Julie’s source of income. A previous article in The Paper said Julie bred, raised, and sold the horses.
Wilson said Julie has not worked any jobs since her animals were seized in 2023.
“She has been depressed,” Wilson said. “She just basically stays in her house and sleeps, gets out a little bit, comes over to our house and stays awhile.”
Now that the case is over, Wilson said he does not know if Julie will restart her business with new miniature horses.
“I’d like to discourage that (idea) and get her back to a job where she could get some insurance and things like that,” Wilson said.
Wilson said Julie started horse riding lessons at 6 years old, and has had her own pasture for at least 30 years. Julie’s pasture is located at 2010 U.S. Highway 70 East, he said. The pasture is about 2.2 acres, but the miniature horses roamed on about four acres, Wilson said, because neighboring property owners allowed Julie to use part of their land.
Not everyone was pleased with the dismissal. Burke County Animal Services Director Kaitlin Settlemyre said it was disappointing.
“Especially after a conviction had been secured in district court and our team had documented what we believed to be strong evidence of neglect over a period of time,” Settlemyre said. “Our role in these cases isn’t to seek punishment, but to step in and protect animals that are clearly suffering. That said, we respect the legal process and the court’s decision, even if the outcome is not what we had hoped for.”
Settlemyre said the case stemmed from longstanding concerns about animal conditions across multiple properties. She said reports of malnourished animals, fatalities, and preventable suffering prompted a coordinated response between animal services, law enforcement, veterinarians, and other outside agencies.
“While the criminal case was ultimately dismissed under livestock exemption laws, we feel there’s still a larger conversation to be had around minimum standards of care — regardless of how an animal is classified,” Settlemyre said. “We’ve already begun engaging with the Department of Agriculture and remain committed to advocating for the welfare of all animals in our community.”
Since the case was dismissed, Assistant District Attorney Walker said no additional charges can be filed regarding the original animals.
Mica Banks is the County Government reporter for The Paper. She can be reached at 828-445-8595 or mica@thepaper.media.
