Press Release - SHI ANNOUNCES COURT VICTORIES FOR VICTIMS IN MISSING HORSE CASES!

Press Release - SHI ANNOUNCES COURT VICTORIES FOR VICTIMS IN MISSING HORSE CASES!

17 October 2011

Update to this release: Friday, May 6, 2006, Court Proceedings in Criminal Case Finalized

Stolen Horse International, Inc.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 2, 2006

SHI ANNOUNCES COURT VICTORIES FOR VICTIMS IN MISSING HORSE CASES! --Together at last, together forever.

From California to Maryland, Stolen Horse International has cases proving the justice system can prevail! When a horse owner is faced with the devastating loss of his or her beloved horse, not through death, but through someone’s ill intent, that person is also faced with a decision of how to handle the situation. For Rod Vilencia of California the victory was more than a decade in the making. And in the end, he was blessed with the return of not only his mare, but with two of her offspring as well. The day of the criminal verdict was handed down, Rod quickly emailed his group of supporters the following:

Today, on April 20, 2006, Shaunda L. Voyles of Seal Rock, Oregon pleaded guilty to Felony Forgery in the first degree to avoid a trial in the stolen horse and forgery case that the state of Oregon had against her! As a part of her plea deal, she has relinquished custody of Ariel, Lena, and Jesse to me and that means that ARIEL IS HOME TO STAY! This is the news that I been hoping to give you all for the past year and a half, and the dream that I have had for the past 13 years now!

Rod went on to thank a number of people including Debi Metcalfe, who was there to personally celebrate Ariel, Lena and Jesse’s homecoming last October. He writes, “Debi Metcalfe, you have been my rock through all of this and you are a Hero.” However, that is only one part of the victory – Rod still has a civil case against Voyles pending.

While Debi, Rod and SHI supporters anxiously await the outcome of the sentencing hearing on May 5, 2006, for the criminal case, at which time Rod will give a victim’s impact statement, we travel from California to Maryland. All the way across the country there is another case where justice has prevailed, but, unfortunately, justice wasn’t quite as sweet.

In December of 2005, the Schoeffield’s beautiful overo paint mare, Sonny, disappeared from the pasture. The initial belief was that it was a simple case of theft. Two weeks later, another horse disappeared from the farm. Suspicion turned quickly to a family member. While the Schoeffield’s reported both horses to SHI, and Idaho Alerts were immediately issued, they began to pursue the suspect through other legal avenues.

The Schoeffield’s first victory came when Sonny was temporarily awarded to them and returned. When Sonny vanished, she was in foal. Upon her return home, Sonny was underweight and her owners despaired over whether the foal could survive or not. In the meantime, the search and proceedings continued for the second mare, a dark bay part-Morgan, Shea.

When the Schoeffields found out that Shea had been sold at auction within a day of her disappearance, their hopes soared. At last they had a lead. As soon as SHI was notified that Shea had been sold at New Holland on January 2, a new Idaho Alert and flyer were issued and NetPosse volunteers began working the lead. Unfortunately, it didn’t come soon enough.

Before Shea could be tracked down, the court declared the Schoffields to be the legal owners of Sonny and Shea. And while there would be no more question of ownership, since Shea had not been recovered, they were allotted a monetary judgment for her. This made the victory bittersweet, but there was one more ray of sunshine to come ... on April 17, 2006, only three days before Rod’s announcement on the other side of the country, a healthy filly was born to Sonny.

While Rod is awaiting Voyles’ sentencing and the outcome of the civil case, the Schoffields still hold out hope that someone will at least let them know where Shea is. Ms. Schoffield writes: “Now all we want to do is find Shea just to know she is okay. We don't want to buy her back but would be really happy to know she was in a safe home. We are not going to try to remove the horse or pursue action against anyone that has purchased her or who currently has her since the case was already resolved.”

The month of April was one of victories for horse owners who had been taken advantage of and had lost their horses. However, these people didn’t accept the situations and didn’t take justice into their own hands. By utilizing the court systems, justice prevailed. SHI was established to help the victims of criminal and civil theft recover their horses, but SHI and the NetPosse members are there no matter what the story or result.

Horse owners know that horse theft has been around longer than Stolen Horse International. It was a crime long before Idaho was stolen and recovered, long before Debi founded SHI and long before Rod and Ariel’s story. Many think of horse theft as the criminal act of a stranger, but “civil” theft is growing rapidly through sales or lease agreements or simply unscrupulous people. Through Debi’s dedication and SHI’s voice in the horse community, horse owners are receiving education and awareness about the prevalence of horse theft that only Debi and SHI can bring them.

There are many stories on NetPosse that don’t yet have happy endings and many more that will come in 2006. Support SHI and its victims by joining the NetPosse, or providing public education or seminars. Metcalfe is available to write articles or give seminars tailored to your specific needs. You may also support SHI through your tax-deductible donation.

Stolen Horse International provides news and other resources for free on this website. As a charitable organization we survive on the kindness of people like you. Please consider donating to help fund the organization or purchasing a NetPosse ID for your horse, dog or cat to help protect your beloved animals!
Donate  Buy NetPosse ID
profile-image

Debi Metcalfe

Founder | debi@netposse.com

Back
Contact Info.

PO Box 1341, Shelby, NC 28151

2024 501(c)(3) © Nonprofit Stolen Horse International, Inc and © NetPosse ™. All rights reserved. Never Underestimate The Power of One© | Bringing Horses Home™

TOS

Website by Regal Computer Services