WILMINGTON — Two of three defendants have pled guilty in a horse abuse case that was delayed by at least eight continuances over a 13-month period.
The case came about after a malnourished horse was seen eating grass on the side of Greenville Loop Road near Hewlett’s Creek, next to a horse farm. An officer with the New Hanover County Animal Control came to the farm and discovered one horse stuck in a mud pit and seven others severely malnourished. The horse, Jordan, was removed from the mud pit but died en route to a local animal hospital.
Judy Woody and her daughter Sarah Woody — the latter an accomplished show horse rider and former veterinarian technician student — each pled guilty on Thursday to 12 counts of animal cruelty. Judge Robin Robinson sentenced the mother and daughter to three years probation, during which time they are prohibited from purchasing, possessing, or caring for any animals, with the exception of the four horses currently under their care.
Robert Woody, Jr., husband of Judy and father of Sarah, received another continuance — his ninth — based on a doctor’s letter presented by his attorney, Merritt Wagoner, who could not be reached for comment. Robert Woody has appeared at previous court hearings in a wheelchair.
The judge’s order also permits the New Hanover County Animal Control access to the Woody farm on Greenville Loop Road “to ensure the well-being of the horses is being maintained.”
“If a vet determines any deterioration in conditions of the animals is due to neglect, that would be a violation [of the probation],” according to the judge’s order.
Additionally, Judy and Sarah are each ordered to pay a restitution of $3,786, paid in monthly installments to the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office. They must also serve 24 hours of community service.
District Attorney Ben David said he must wait until Robert Woody’s case has been resolved to make in-depth comments on the case, but said his office believes the punishment served the best interest of the judicial system. The judge’s order was based on consultations with law enforcement and veterinarian professionals who handled the case, according to David.
“We are happy to see Sarah and Judy Woody admit guilt in court and will await a resolution to the charges against Robert Woody,” David said.
Jennifer Witkowski, a horse rights advocate in Pender County, said the punishment handed to the Woody women is unlikely to satisfy the tight-knit horse community in the Cape Fear region.
“It would be one thing if it was just someone who inadvertently did this through a lack of education, but the sick part about this was that this was an intentional thing,” Witkowski said. “Sarah was studying to be a vet tech and had extensive animal history, especially in animal nutrition, and knowingly starved these animals — two of them who died. I honestly don’t know if there is justice for that. That’s a cruelty that I think is absolutely unmeasurable.”
Witkowski said she is not pleased that the four remaining horses on the Woody farm will be cared for by the same people who starved two horses to death and left six others severely malnourished. The twelve counts of animal cruelty handed down to each woman represented the 12 horses found on the farm last July: one died in route to Reagan Equine hospital in northern Wilmington; one was euthanized several months later at Horton’s Rehab Ranch in Pender County, due to lasting ill effects of its mistreatment; three of the more stable horses were adopted by a Reagan employee; four successfully recovered at the same horse rehabilitation ranch; four remain on the Woody farm.
Ironically, Sarah Woody once worked at Reagan Equine hospital. Dr. Ginger Reagan did not respond to a request for comment on Friday. In July, she issued a statement condemning her former employee, but said she could not comment further on the matter due to client and patient confidentiality.
“We are personally shocked and outraged at the situation regarding the starved horses from New Hanover County,” according to the statement.
Witkowski said she is “fearful for the other horses because these people have done atrocious things once before,” and hopes the county’s animal control unit follows through in keeping a proper eye on the four remaining horses.
Lt. Jerry Brewer, spokesman for the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office, did not respond when asked on Friday what the sheriff’s office animal control unit’s plan was to ensure the property is consistently monitored over the next three years. He was also asked how often they have performed welfare checks on the farm since the malnourished horses were first discovered in July 2019, after the office initially promised to perform those checks.
Witkowski said she and other horse advocates plan to pursue justice for Jordan and Brutus, the two horses who died, by ensuring that horse organizations nationwide are notified of Sarah Woody’s charges and guilty plea in the hope of lifetime bans.
Jewell Horton of Horton’s Ranch, who cared for four of the recovered horses, called the punishment “par for the course,” given what she has seen in her line of work with the county and her rehab ranch. She believes the horse community at large will not be satisfied with the judge’s ruling.
“There’s no shock and awe for me, but I do think there will be some unrest in the community at large about [the punishment],” Horton said.
Asked if she believed the Woody family should have been permanently banned from caring for any horses, she said her position as animal shelter manager with Pender County prohibits her from publicly expressing an opinion on the matter.
“Unfortunately, animal welfare laws are not very strict,” Horton said. “People are going to be upset by that and will be mad at [New Hanover County] Animal Services, but, unfortunately, the judicial system and animal services can only enforce the law on the books. And they can only push down what there is a precedence for.”
She said the regional horse community had higher expectations for the Woody family because they had the money, knowledge and education “to do this right.”
“I think that ups the ante on this and that’s why people are not going to feel like justice was served,” Horton said. “A lot of times with these kind of cases, we find people who just didn’t know better. They haven’t worked for a veterinarian; they haven’t graduated from an equine college with educational equine management and nutrition education — those things that make you think, ‘You did know better.’”
She said Sarah Woody graduated from Martin Community College with an associate’s degree in equine technology. Woody then entered the Cape Fear Community College veterinarian program to become a registered veterinary technician. She said her understanding was that the school’s administration asked Woody to leave the program because, with an animal cruelty conviction, she is no longer eligible for the program.
Dr. Clif Simmons, director of the school’s Veterinary Medical Technology program, did not respond to an email and phone call Friday requesting confirmation of whether Woody was kicked out of the program.
Author’s Note: Port City Daily has covered the case since July 2019, starting with the New Hanover Sheriff’s Office initially declining to press charges. Get caught up with developments below:
July 30, 2019: New Hanover Sheriff’s Office: No charges against Greenville Loop farm after one horse dies, five sent to hospital
August 7, 2019: Horse neglect likely took time, some allege it was intentional; New Hanover Sheriff still investigating
August 16, 2019: After month-long investigation, Wilmington family charged with animal cruelty after horse rescue
December 12, 2019: Ongoing court delays frustrate horse advocates in New Hanover animal abuse caseFebruary 13: Sixth delay granted for New Hanover horse abuse case, judge says it’ll be the last
February 13, 2020: Sixth delay granted for New Hanover horse abuse case, judge says it’ll be the last
March 12, 2020: ‘A damn circus’: Judge delays Wilmington horse abuse case for 7th time after promising no more continuances
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