‘Ragtime’ Cited Again, Just 2 Days After Victory

Thousand Oaks officials Wednesday issued another citation to the owner of Ragtime, the miniature horse, just two days after an appellate court dismissed a similar criminal complaint.

“I don’t know when this is going to stop,” said Ragtime’s owner, Patty Fairchild. “I can’t believe that the city doesn’t have anything better to do.”

Thousand Oaks officials have tried since December, 1986, to remove Fairchild’s miniature horse, which is 29 inches tall, from the back yard of her Oakbrook Village home. A city ordinance prohibits the keeping of two horses on properties, such as Fairchild’s, that are smaller than 20,000 square feet.

But on Monday, a three-judge appellate panel upheld a ruling by Ventura Municipal Judge Herbert Curtis III, who in September ruled that the city zoning code regarding horses is poorly worded and unenforceable. The ruling stemmed from a citation issued Fairchild a year ago.

The panel of Ventura County Superior Court judges--Melinda Johnson, Bruce A. Thompson and Kenneth R. Yegan--ruled that the city law could not be used to prosecute Fairchild because it does not mention restrictions against a single horse but specifies a ban against two horses.

The citation issued Wednesday said Fairchild was violating a revised version of the law that specifically prohibits the keeping of a single horse, Fairchild said.

City officials could not be reached for comment Wednesday on the latest citation.

Assistant City Atty. Shawn Mason had said Tuesday that the city did not plan to appeal the court’s ruling but would proceed with a civil lawsuit against Fairchild. The city and the Oakbrook Homeowners Assn. have filed lawsuits seeking injunctions to have the horse removed.

The association’s lawsuit is scheduled to go to trial Sept. 6 in Ventura County Superior Court.