Judge Dismisses Suit Challenging Calico Roundup

Posted May 24, 2010 

by Laura Allen

Animal Law Coalition

Update May 24, 2010: U.S. District Court Judge Paul L. Friedman has dismissed this case, entering summary judgment in favor or the BLM. A copy of the opinion is attached below.
The judge found the issues related to the legality of the round up of the Calico Mt. Complex wild horses are moot because the roundup has already occurred.

The judge explained that while he denied plaintiffs In Defense of Animals, Craig Downer and Terri Farley, a preliminary injunction that would have stopped the roundup before it occurred, they should have appealed that denial. Because they failed to appeal the denial of the motion for preliminary injunction at the time, Judge Friedman said he could not now hear their claims.

(There is an exception to the mootness doctrine for claims that are capable of repetition but evading review, meaning acts or omissions which could never be challenged in court because it would be moot by the time the court could reach a decision. That exception would have applied in this case. But, said the judge, for that exception to apply and for the court to be able to review the plaintiffs' claims, they would have had to appeal the denial of the motion for preliminary injunction.)

The judge also dismissed their remaining claims for lack of standing. The judge explained that plaintiffs were challenging the legality of warehousing wild horses in long term holding facilities including as Interior Secy. Ken Salazar has proposed, on "preserves" in the midwest or East. The judge acknowledged that when he denied the motion for preliminary injunction, he did state there was a likelihood of success on that claim. Wild horse enthusiasts, wildlife ecologists, advocates and many other citizens as well as the plaintiffs in the case, hoped the judge's words meant he intended to end the warehousing of wild horses in long term facilities and pave the way for them to remain free roaming on the range.
 
But now, said Judge Friedman, he does not believe the plaintiffs have standing to pursue that claim. He explained that plaintiffs did not show the injury they would suffer from the roundup of the wild horses was related to placement in long term holding facilities. He said they only established a causal connection between their suffering and the round up and removal of wild horses from the Calico Mt. Complex.
The judge then said they also lacked standing to pursue the claim added by the plaintiffs after denial of the motion for preliminary injunction under the National Environmental Policy Act, ("NEPA"), 42 U.S.C. §§ 4321, et seq. They alleged the BLM had failed to consider the significant environmental impact of holding wild horses in long term holding facilities.

A "procedural injury" such as a NEPA claim was not sufficient to establish standing, said the judge, unless the plaintiff showed a causal connection between the NEPA violation and their injury. The judge found the plaintiffs had not established such a connection.
   
For more on this case, read Animal Law Coalition's report and update below and for more on the brutal roundup and removal of the Calico wild horses....

CA Senator Florez Introduces Bill SJR 22 in Support of Fed Horse Slaughter Ban

CA Senator Florez Introduces Bill SJR 22 in Support of Fed Horse Slaughter Ban

This measure would memorialize the Congress to support federal legislation to protect American horses from slaughter for human consumption.  

WHEREAS,
California voters enacted a ban on the slaughter of horses for human consumption and the sale of horsemeat for human consumption in 1998; and

WHEREAS, California horses continue to be transported and sold out of state, making protection of our horses difficult and dependent on the passage of a federal
ban on the movement of horses for purposes of slaughter for human consumption; and 

WHEREAS, The slaughter of American horses has continued unabated despite the closing in 2007 of the three slaughter houses then still operating within the United States;
and

WHEREAS, Federal legislation has been introduced, the Conyers-Burton Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act of 2009, that would prohibit the possession, shipping,
transporting, purchasing, selling, delivering, or receiving of horses and other equines in interstate or foreign commerce for slaughter for human consumption;
and

WHEREAS, Horse slaughter is not humane euthanasia and is in fact animal torture and cruelty;
and

WHEREAS, Horse slaughter has been detrimental to the communities where slaughtering facilities have been located, with significant negative impacts to these communities
ranging from nuisance odors to chronic sewer and environmental violations; and

WHEREAS, Horse slaughter has been found to increase and abet horse theft; and

WHEREAS, Horse slaughter is not a means of controlling numbers of unwanted, abandoned, or neglected horses, but, rather, is a for-profit operation driven by a demand for
horsemeat in some foreign countries; and 

WHEREAS, American horses are not raised, fed, or medicated within the FDA guidelines established
for food animals, making them potentially unfit and unsafe for human consumption; and

WHEREAS, In America, horses are an icon of our history, traditions, and culture, revered for their contributions to the building of this country, their companionship,
and their special bond with people; now, therefore, be it  

Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly of the State of California, jointly, That the Legislature hereby urges Congress to support federal
legislation to protect American horses from slaughter for human consumption;
and be it further  

Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate is hereby authorized and directed to transmit copies of this resolution to the President and
Vice President of the United States, the Majority Leader of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and to each Senator and Representative
from California in the Congress of the United States.

Link to Bill at CA.Gov
http://leginfo.ca.gov/pub/09-10/bill/sen/sb_0001-0050/sjr_22_bill_20100210_introduced.html

Learn more about this topic:
"Saving America's Horses A Nation Betrayed"
http://www.savingamericashorses.org/home.html
Protection for All Equines from Slaughter

Calico Round Up Ends Feb 5, 2010

Broken Horses, Broken Promises

Calico Round Up Ends with 1922 Mustangs Captured

Death Toll 39 To Date

The Bureau of Land Management has pulled the plug on the massive roundup of wild horses in the Calico Complex. This remote and starkly beautiful area in northwestern Nevada was home to one of the largest wild, free-roaming herds of wild horses in the United States. 39 horses are reported dead as a result of the winter roundup. This does not include the 25-30 mares that have aborted their late term foals in the feedlot style facility outside Fallon, Nevada. The death toll is expected to rise as BLM begins preparing and processing the horses next week (freeze-branding, gelding of stallions, etc.). However, the public may not know what happens from here on out, as BLM has decided not to provide veterinary reports on the cause of death in the new Fallon facility, according to BLM manager, John Neil. 

Despite a public statement by Don Glenn (December 7 at the National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board Meeting in Reno) in which he said that the public is welcome to view the roundups at any time (hence no need for a humane observer), the public was allowed only limited access to watch the Calico roundup. Viewing was limited to Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays by appointment only. Only 10 observers were allowed on any one day.  Even on the days the public was allowed to attend, viewers were required to leave between 1 and 2 in the afternoon, even though the Cattoor contract crew and helicopters continued to round up wild horses. Close access was denied for the last two weeks of the operation and injuries could not be detected or documented. BLM has referred to the visitors as “anti-gather advocates”. The contractors admitted that 30 wild horses captured on January 31 were left overnight in a crowded capture corral without water due to muddy conditions which prevented trucks from accessing the capture sight.

Now BLM sights are set on the wild horses of the Eagle Complex in the mountains of eastern Nevada. The area is larger than the state of Rhode Island, yet the number of mustangs allowable according to BLM is 100. At the same time, the number of privately-owned welfare cattle allowed is over 2,700.

 --The Cloud Foundation

Death Toll Rising - Horses Don't Lie

WFLF/AAHS
By Katia Louise
Jan 30,2010

There are news stories published nearly every day now about the Federal BLM Round Up of Wild Horses. Due to the efforts of those looking out for the best interest of the horses, more information has been surfacing and both local news stations and mainstream news outlets have been covering the topic more and more. As of Jan 30, the BLM admits to 27 horses killed during the current Calico round up in NV and this ever rising death toll has gotten worldwide attention.

Despite of the publicity and exposure, pro horse advocates are disappointed in the way media is presenting this issue to the public. Advocates worry that important information and facts are being left out, and that this paves the way for those that profit from these cruel and controversial activities. The BLM has made this issue appear as though it's between the BLM and the advocates, but in truth, it's all about what the BLM is doing to the horses.

The horse advocates are looking out for the horses. The BLM is looking out for themselves.

One of the most widely contended aspects of the BLM roundup/ removal of wild horses is the BLM's claim that the horses are starving due to an absence of forage on their assigned range lands. What has proven to be a clear pattern is the governments' creative & selective production of imagery. For example, a couple of pictures have recently surfaced in media reports where nursing mares are depicted. The problem arises when these images depict isolated and rare instances of thin nursing mares. These same mares are then touted by DOI Secretary Salazar and other BLM officials as an accurate example of what they claim to be the poor health and condition of the entire wild horse population.

In speaking from my own firsthand experience as an observer of the Calico round up, what I find concerning is that the number of horses that appear less fat and healthy is actually a mere small fraction of the overall population. Further, these thinner horses are predominantly mares with foals still nursing. When looking at the entire population of horses, it's important to note that their body condition at the time of roundup, as the BLM admittedly reports; is good. And when you look specifically at the remaining population of horses (the stallions, yearlings and mares without foals) from the same HMA's they do not show the so called signs of malnourishment. Further, it should also be pointed out the that it’s a common natural occurrence for most any species living on the land in their natural environment during the dead of winter, while nursing to lose more body weight than other members of their herd. Based on the same, this type of natural weight loss is more appropriately attributed to the foal’s need for nourishment from the mare, rather than the claim that these mares are starving from insufficient forage.

The exposure of the truth has caused the DOI and BLM to step up their misinformation campaigns. If wild horses were truly starving out on the range, the so called excess populations wouldn't be a problem, and the round ups would NOT be necessary. On the other hand if there were such a thing as an excess wild horse problem, then the wild horses would be in fact thriving and doing quite nicely on their own.. Again no need for the BLM to step in and place them on feed lots at taxpayer's expense. And if the BLM truly cared about our wild American horses and they wanted to do the best thing for them, they would leave them out on the open ranges and allow they to transverse their assigned HMA's on their own, rather than stampede them across lava fields with helicopters and removal them permanently.

The BLM is clever to call the round up a gather. They shoot these nursing mares leaving behind orphaned foals and then call that euthanasia. They then spin the death tolls and statistics to bolster their misinformation campaign. What other indiscriminate tactics are being used by the BLM in effort mislead the public?

Wild Horse Remain Under Seige by Government Authorities

Courtesy Wild for Life Foundation (Jan 22, 2010)
The BLM reports that 118 horses taken to the Fallon facility on Wednesday. They intend to ship the remaining horses at the trap sites to Fallon on 1/22/10 and a new location in the Calico HMA will be established. BLM states that approx 30 mares from the Warm Springs HMA range in body condition from a 2.5 to 3.0, but the BLM does not mention the fact that these mares are still nursing their young. An estimated 20 to 25 horses at the facility have received treatment for various injuries or lameness. Other reports are still coming in.

No wind breaks will be constructed for the general population of wild horses now penned inside the new BLM feed lot, though after much pressure from pro horse advocates, the BLM just announced they now intend to build wind breaks for sick & lame animals...

Recently free roaming Calico wild horses adversely impacted as follows: 1,195 REMOVED, 1,074 AT FEED LOT, 30 IN TRAPS, 2 SHOT AT TRAP SITES, 1 DIED DURING STAMPEDE, 1 ESCAPED- CURRENT WHEREABOUTS UNCONFIRMED, SIX DEATHS ATTRIBUTED TO FEED LOT. (Said totals per BLM) *Note that inconsistencies remain as to the true number of horses on site at the Fallon feed lot.

Read the WFLF Report on the Calico Round Up, "The Look in Their Eyes"

From The Cloud Foundation:
Two more horses were killed at the Fallon Facility in conjunction with the Calico roundup on 1/21/10. Based on the posted BLM report: The Cattoors/BLM ran the feet off a colt on Tuesday, let him stand for a day, then made him ride four hours in a trailer to Fallon where he was unloaded and then shot. At least two of his hooves had fallen off. This colt and his family may have been run by helicopter up to 14 miles on Tuesday. We don’t know how fast over rough volcanic rock and terrain this foal was run. Another mare was down in the trailer, arrived at Fallon alive and then died subsequently. No members of the public were allowed to observe on 1/21/10 and no one will be allowed to go to Fallon Facility until Tuesday, Jan. 26th.

This from In Defense of Animals:
It’s time to get public comments in on another large removal of wild horses which is planned by the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Land Management (BLM). This time the BLM intends to remove over 500 of the estimated 645 horses living in or near the “Eagle Herd Management Area” in eastern Nevada outside of Ely. While 500 individuals is fewer than the 2,500 horses currently being rounded up and removed from the Calico Complex in northwest Nevada (click here for Calico update), the Eagle roundup is even more ludicrous because it is 125,000 acres larger than Calico, but the government will only allow 100 horses to remain! In Calico, by contrast, 500-900 horses will be left behind in the approximately 500,000-acre public land complex.

The Obama Administration is continuing the Bush Administration policy of targeting wild horses in order to serve special cattle and other industry interests. Under President Obama's oversight, the BLM is actually accelerating the pace of wild horse removals, with 12,000 horses targeted for capture from our public lands in Fiscal Year 2010 alone. The majority of these horses will be sent to government holding facilities, where they will join the 35,000 wild horses already stockpiled at taxpayer expense.

This from the Cloud Foundation:
Captured Calico Wild Horses Denied Windbreaks
BLM’s double-standards leave nearly 1000 captured mustangs in the cold
Fallon, NV (January 19, 2010)— 956 wild American mustangs rounded up off public land by helicopters in the past two weeks now stand in a feedlot-style Bureau of Land Management (BLM) contracted holding facility outside of Fallon, Nevada on private land. The new Fallon facility is not equipped with shelter, windbreaks or protection of any kind for the horses. High winds, rain and snow are expected to continue through the end of the week. In Calico, herds can move to sheltered canyons for protection from the harsh winter weather. Yet, in Fallon, they are deprived of adequate protection despite recommendations from wild horse advocates. This is in direct opposition to BLM’s own standards.
“I’m confused by the double standard. Before members of the public are allowed to adopt a wild horse from BLM we must prove we have adequate shelter. Why doesn’t BLM have to meet the same standards?” asks Ann Evans, adopter of three mustangs.
Yesterday, members of the public reported an inhumane lack of windbreaks. No apparent effort has been made to tie canvas tarps on fences to block the howling wind and the anticipated driving snow. On Friday January 15, advocates asked local Nevada BLM staff, Directors and top-level Department of Interior (DOI) under-secretaries to intervene on behalf of the horses by creating wind blocks.

Click here to join the Unified Call for an Immediate Moratorium on Wild Horse & Burro Roundups

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BLM original post re colt's hoofs

BLM Vet report re colt's hoofs
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