Saugus Rancher Put on 2 Years’ Probation for Neglecting Horses

The embattled owner of 43 horses that were found living in conditions of neglect in a remote Saugus canyon was sentenced to two years’ probation Friday, and was ordered not to own or board more than three horses at a time.

Gerald Ingle, 67, had pleaded guilty to 90 misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty in Newhall Municipal Court in October after the horses were impounded on his Dry Canyon property on Oct. 14.

The animals, which had overgrown hoofs and were kept in manure-filled pens, were placed under the supervision of the county Department of Animal Care and Control. Since then, Ingle said he has sold 30 of the horses for prices ranging from $500 to $2,000 each.

Repay Horse Care Costs

On Friday, Ingle was ordered by Municipal Judge H. Keith Byram to repay the county Department of Animal Care and Control $6,196 for costs of caring for the horses. Byram also sentenced Ingle to 45 days of community service.

If he should violate the terms of probation, Ingle would face six months in county jail, Byram said.

“I wish you good fortune. I think you’ve learned your lesson,” Byram said. “I think you’re probably guilty of gross negligence as opposed to a criminal act.”

“It was gross negligence on his part. I don’t think there can be any doubt about that,” Deputy Dist. Atty. James A. Baker said. “He professes to care for horses, but he certainly didn’t show it by how he was treating them for the last few years.”

Ingle, a maintenance worker at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Canada Flintridge, has said that he began breeding horses five years ago but became overwhelmed by the venture.

He contended that he has been the victim of “continuous harassment” since an article and photographs depicting the horses’ condition were published in a local newspaper.

“We’ve received many threats, and we’re still overrun with people wandering on the property” to get a look at the horses, Ingle said.

In a report prepared for the sentencing, a probation officer said that Ingle “appears to be a well-meaning horse breeder whose love for horses got him into a situation he was unable to adequately control.”