Horse soring sentence includes order to write

John Mays, charged with violations of the Horse Protection Act in connection with soring horses with trainer Jackie McConnell, was sentenced Monday to four months of "time served" in jail and ordered to write a newspaper article about soring.

U.S. District Judge Sandy Mattice ordered Mays to write the article as a "community service" condition of his one-year supervised release, according to attorneys in the case.

Mays had been jailed after he failed to report to a probation officer while out on bond. He had pleaded guilty to a lesser, misdemeanor count earlier this year and was awaiting sentencing.

Mays' article is to describe how widespread soring is, who it is done for and how these training techniques affect the horses.

Soring is the illegal application of caustic chemicals to the horses' legs and feet. Soring causes horses to lift their hooves in the "big lick" for which the breed has become known.

Court documents state that Mays, McConnell, Jeff Dockery and Joseph Abernathy were charged by a federal grand jury on Feb. 29 in a 52-count indictment.

The indictment followed a video made by an undercover agent from the Humane Society of the United States who was employed by McConnell. The tapes show McConnell, Mays and others applying mustard oil and similar substances to the pasterns and feet of walking horses from March to May 2011.

"The video showed the horses, in obvious pain, having trouble standing and being whipped until they did stand," according to the plea agreement entered in court documents.

Sentencing is set for McConnell, Dockery and Abernathy in September.

Contact staff writer Pam Sohn at psohn@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6346.