$50,000 bond with restrictions set for Mukwonago horse farmer
TOWN OF MUKWONAGO, Wis. - A Town of Mukwonago horse farmer charged with illegal gun possession and told to remove all animals from her property has been given bond.
Bond and restrictions
What we know:
Ralinda Howard now has a $50,000 signature bond with strict conditions.
Howard can leave Wisconsin but only for business, and she has to give up her passport.
She also can't have any animals on her property — but she can sell them.
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She's supposed to surrender all animals by Friday, March 20. She's also not allowed to have any weapons.
She'll be back in court April 13.
Mukwonago horse farmer ordered to surrender animals in weapons case
Mukwonago horse farmer Ralinda Howard must remove all animals from her property by March 20 as a bond condition in her felon-in-possession case after months of complaints and citations about conditions.
Ralinda Howard charged
The backstory:
The court action follows months of complaints about conditions on the property.
In February, former farmworker Lisa Vega told FOX6 News about what she said she witnessed while working there.
"It was horrible, horrible," said Vega. "Death, dismemberment, disfigurement, just overall, horror."
Police executed a search warrant at the property in November with two veterinarians present.
According to court records, investigators found "several horses appeared underweight" and noted "shelters [...] were too small to accommodate the 25 horses on the property."
Despite the complaints, prosecutors have not filed criminal animal cruelty charges.
"Clearly, the DA’s office did not deem the allegations involving the animals worthy of any criminal charges," said Peter Wolff, Howard’s defense attorney.
Dig deeper:
Instead, the concerns have been handled through municipal citations issued by the Town of Mukwonago.
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Through an open records request, FOX6 obtained seven citations tied to the property. Some cite inadequate animal shelters, while others involve horses with skin irritations or animals lacking access to food and water.
Police say a total of 40 citations have been issued since October.
The Source: Information in this post comes from prior reporting, the Waukesha County District Attorney's Office, an open records request, and court records.