yup. these boys are up in butte trying to snare a moose with a 1 ton chevy.
Posted on 05/16/2002 2:03:09 PM PDT by greydog
TAYLORVILLE—The case of the lawyer, the prison officer and the businessman accused of dragging a dead horse around the downtown square has outraged Taylorville families.
Listeners are telephoning radio shows. Angry letters have poured in to the local newspaper. One writer said: “As far as I’m concerned, all three men need to be tarred and feathered and dragged behind a truck.”
Taylorville resident Pam Rogers didn’t go that far, but her anger over the alleged May 2 incident still burned Tuesday: “I think what they did is totally disgusting,” said Rogers, 34.
“I saw the bloodstains all down the road and, dead or alive, they should not have done that to that horse.” Attorney Louis DePaepe, whose office is just off the square, Taylorville Correctional Center officer Bob Shivers and Don Barlow, a partner in Gesell Oil Co. of Taylorville, are accused of improper disposal of a dead animal. The misdemeanor carries a maximum $1,000 fine and 30 days in jail.
City police say they stopped the three Taylorville men about midnight as they dragged the horse on a chain attached to a white pickup truck. Police say the men told them the horse belonged to a neighbor, and they were trying to sneak its body out to the local landfill as a favor.
The men had dragged the horse more than four miles, and the landfill is nowhere near the square. Outspoken critics have asked why the police did not issue the men any traffic tickets or give them a sobriety test.
Taylorville Police Chief Greg Brotherton has since conducted an investigation of his officers’ conduct. Those findings also have been reviewed by an expert from the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police. The investigation and its review will be discussed at 7:30 p.m. today at a special meeting of the Taylorville City Council.
Brotherton said Tuesday that he hoped his report would clear the air. He said the horse dragging ranked as one of the strangest things he’s had to deal with in six years as chief. “It’s a shame that this had to happen right in the center of the city and has been blown up into such a big thing,” he added.
Taylorville Mayor Jim Montgomery Jr. said it was a public relations black eye for the city that describes itself as a “great place to live.” But he added: “We take what happened very seriously. We know people are angry.”
A lot of that anger centers on why grown men with respectable careers would allegedly get involved in something so bizarre. “What were the guys dragging that horse thinking?” asked Theresa Hannel, 41, who works on the square.
“Perhaps they thought it was funny. ... well, it isn’t funny.”
Shivers could not be reached for comment Tuesday, and several Taylorville residents said DePaepe and Barlow were off hunting in Montana.
Dusti Odam, 27, a secretary in DePaepe’s office, said her boss had apologized publicly for what happened. “He is a nice guy—anybody who is saying otherwise doesn’t know him,” she added.
Tony Reid can be reached at 217-421-7977.
See what kind of people own guns, go to Montana and hunt?
Just kidding there but if Jennings ever got ahold of this story it would be the one part he would highlight.
Obvious Pun Bump...
Why do I think the consumption of alcoholic beverages may somehow have been involved?
Some things you just can't explain.
Taylorville Mayor Jim Montgomery Jr. said it was a public relations black eye for the city that describes itself as a “great place to live.”...
I'm thinking maybe the town needs to change the sign at the town limits to "Taylorville - great place to live, but after you die, all bets are off..." ;0)
Yeah, I know but I bet they don't drag them through the streets. Even the Frogs have some ethics--I think.
yup. these boys are up in butte trying to snare a moose with a 1 ton chevy.
I'm just waiting for the commercial from the DNC that tries to pin this on Bush...
LOL-- Hey FRiend, don't give the dumb @$$ RATS any ideas.
Barbara
Taylorville man boards plane.
Flight attendant asks him "Is THAT a dead horse you have with you?" You will HAVE to check it."
Taylorville resident replies, "But sir, it is CARRION!"
~Horse Lover
I bet they were. Probably told to get out of town until things simmer down. I hope someone *does* tar and feather them.
Tuor
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