All charges have been dropped against three men accused of killing a wild horse in the Sundre area.
Jason Nixon, 30, Earl Anderson, 41, both of Sundre, and Gary Cape, 35, of Calgary, had been accused of shooting the feral animal some time between May and September 2009 in the Sundre area.
A 14-year-old male from Sundre is also charged but he can’t be named under terms of the Youth Criminal Justice Act. It is expected charges will dropped against him as well.
All were accused of wilfully killing the horse and careless use of a firearm.
The dramatic development took place in a Calgary courtroom on Wednesday morning. Court had resumed after three-week adjournment was called after new evidence came to light.
According to media reports from the trial, the men said they had simply removed a dead horse from the road. Other hunters had come across the corpse of the pregnant mare earlier and had determined it had not been shot and took photographs.
At the time of the offence, the three adults accused were working at Mountain Aire Lodge near Sundre operated by the Mustard Seed Ministry, a Calgary-based charity.
RCMP livestock investigator Cpl. Dave Heaslip said the investigation on the horse killings continues.
“Certainly, we’re not going to close the book on it,” said Heaslip.
“We’ll continue pushing ahead. We’re certainly asking the general public if anybody has got any further information to please come forward.”
Heaslip admitted disappointment with the outcome. But he said police collect all evidence, whether it supports a conviction or not and the Crown must weigh that evidence.
“We certainly have to convict someone beyond reasonable doubt. Any time there’s a basic conflict in the evidence it has to be looked at by the Crown prosecutor.
“And the Crown makes the decision whether they want to proceed with the trial or not.”
The first reported shootings were in the fall of 2005. The last horse shot was found in the fall of 2009 in the Limestone Mountain area near Mountain Aire Lodge, about 60 km west of Sundre.
pcowley@www.reddeeradvocate.com