On the Record

By: Danny Jacobs

The husband and wife who pleaded guilty last month to animal cruelty charges in the death of one horse and neglect of two others at their Windsor Mill home have filed appeals of their convictions, according to court records and the prosecutor in the case.

Hilton and Donna Silver were each sentenced in Baltimore County District Court to three consecutive weekends in jail and ordered to pay $10,000 in restitution. No trial dates have been set, but Assistant State’s Attorney Adam Lippe said he would try to keep the Silvers together as in district court proceedings.

The appeals also complicate the future of the two surviving horses, which have recovered and are ready for adoption, Lippe said. While Donna Silver has signed a waiver relinquishing ownership of the horses, Hilton Silver, a Baltimore County lawyer, has not, Lippe said. So the horses cannot be moved until the legal issues in the case have been resolved.

Until then, the horses will remain at Days End Farm Horse Rescue in Woodbine, where they have lived since April. During last month’s hearing, Lippe said the county has spent at least $10,000 caring for the horses.

By: Danny Jacobs

The surviving horses that were taken from Hilton and Donna Silver are well on their way to recovery,  a Baltimore County animal control official said Wednesday.

“They are doing phenomenal,” said Brooke Birman-Vrany, assistant director at Days End Farm Horse Rescue in Woodbine, which has housed the horses since April.

Birman-Vrany’s testimony was blocked by the judge after the Silvers pleaded guilty Tuesday to neglecting their stable of three. District Court Judge Robert J. Steinberg ruled that she would essentially be giving a victim impact statement on behalf of the horses, one of whom had to be euthanized.

Reached Wednesday, Birman-Vrany said the two surviving Arabians are exiting the “critical care stage” of their training program, with physical rehab that includes round-the-clock care and a strict feeding plan. They are now entering the “maintenance” stage of the program to re-learn how to handle a rider and generally be a horse for a new owner.

Birman-Vrany estimated the horses would be adopted by this time next year, based on the average horse’s stay at Days End Farm Horse Rescue.

The nonprofit organization currently cares for nearly 60 horses, almost all taken in through animal control offices around Maryland. The organization also in some cases takes in horses private owners can no longer care for, which is a growing problem in the current economy; Birman-Vrany said her office receives three calls a day from private owners.

“We’ve had a real increase in horse issues,” she said.

Birman-Vrany praised the work of Baltimore County prosecutors and animal control officers in the Silvers’ case, saying it has a set a precedent for horse neglect cases.

“I was very grateful for everyone who stood up for these horses’ welfare,” she said.

Note: Photo at top left is file art.

By: Steve Lash

H. Mercedes Clemens, a certified personal massage therapist in Rockville, expected to be back at her side business of massaging horses by now.

But her efforts to end a cease-and-desist order from the Maryland Board of Chiropractic and Massage Therapy Examiners remain in legal limbo. While pre-trial hearings were scheduled to resume tomorrow in Montgomery County Circuit Court, they have been postponed — a third time — for at least a month, according to her attorney Paul Sherman.

When Clemens and the board last met in court, May 5, Judge David A. Boynton wondered aloud whether the agency, which certifies massage therapists, has the authority to regulate the massaging of horses.

Boynton postponed further hearings on the issue for a month to allow the board to reconsider its position at a May 14 meeting. The board didn’t back down, and Clemens has no intention of doing so.

Scheduling conflicts caused the June 2 hearing to be postponed until June 17. Today, that hearing was postponed as well.

Stay tuned.