Stockton Pair Jailed for Horse Cruelty

Apparently those convicted at Teesside Magistrates Court are much less likely to receive a custodial sentence than those convicted at Magistrates' Courts elsewhere in England or Wales.

That statistic didn't hold true for a Stockton pair convicted of animal cruelty, when Teesside Magistrates took the very unusual step of jailing them for their crimes.

Courtney Marie Layton, 19, and Ian David Tait, 45, appeared in court yesterday having previously pleaded guilty to charges of neglecting horses contrary to section 4 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.

Ian David Tait and Courtney Layton arrive at court.

The court heard how RSPCA inspectors had visited the pair's shared Port Clarence allotment on Easter Sunday and found four horses living in horrendous conditions.

Thankfully, the horses, named Dinky, Harley, Little Man and Blaze - are all now fighting fit and healthy after being taken in by the RSPCA.

John Ellwood, prosecuting for the RSPCA, told the court: "The RSPCA were called to the Victoria Terrace allotments where they found four horses in dreadful conditions.

"Two belonged to Courtney Layton and the others belonged to Ian Tait, who also owned the allotment.

"One horse box had no wheels and one horse, Blaze, was lying in the mud and was making no effort to stand up.

"He was starving and his spine, ribs and shoulders could be seen.

"A member of the public had seen a distressed pony and called the RSPCA - they arrived on Easter Sunday.

"A pony had collapsed and a member of the public had been feeding it.

"Dinky was barricaded in a horse box that was too small and covered in faeces.

"Harley, who had lice, and Little Man were left loose in the allotment in extremely poor conditions."

Tait's putrid Port Clarence allotment.

The court heard how Tait, the owner of Dinky and Harley, had become abusive when interviewed by RSPCA inspectors, claiming he had been "set up".

Liz McGowan, defending, told the court that Layton had become pregnant and was struggling to visit the horses frequently. Layton claimed she had an arrangement with her brother to look after the horses, but said she had visited on Easter Saturday to check they had been fed and watered.

Tait, who had been visited by the RSPCA previously for keeping horses in poor conditions, claimed that he had moved his horses to the allotment the night before they were found after they were un-tethered from a different location by someone.

Layton was jailed for 18 weeks and Tait was given a 12-week prison term. Both were banned from keeping animals for 10 years.