Update on Devil's Garden PI Motion Hearing

San Francisco, CA (May 9, 2019) - U.S. District Court Judge James Donato in San Francisco has upheld the prohibition against the Forest Service selling federally-protected wild horses without limitation on slaughter. This decision is part of ongoing litigation by the American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign) and the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF), alongside a similar case by other groups concerning the fate of wild horses captured from the Devil's Garden Wild Horse Territory in the Modoc National Forest near Alturas, CA.

Represented by William Eubanks of Meyer, Glitzenstein and Eubanks, a renowned public interest law firm, AWHC and ALDF have achieved numerous legal victories for wild horses and burros over the past nine years.

In court, attorneys for the U.S. Forest Service stated that while they will not sell horses for human consumption, they may sell them for other purposes, such as feeding zoo animals or as "bucking stock" in rodeos, which could lead to slaughter. Attorneys for ranchers and county officials intervening in the lawsuit indicated that the Forest Service plans to use slaughter as a means to clear over a thousand more wild horses to allow for increased cattle grazing in the Modoc National Forest.

The American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign) remains committed to protecting Devil's Garden wild horses from slaughter for any purpose, reflecting the wishes of the majority of Californians and Americans.