Dracut town leader under fire amid allegations she neglected horses in her care

DRACUT, Mass. (MyFoxBoston.com) -- A Dracut town leader is under fire amidst allegations she neglected horses in her care.

Tuesday, MSPCA officials confirmed they are investigating possible criminal charges against Chairwoman Cathy Richardson after she surrendered three horses to an animal control officer in late March.

“There's the court of public opinion, and then there's the court of law, and the bar is very high,” said MSPCA spokesman Rob Halpin. “All I can say about the investigation at this point is that our officer in the field that covers that area is gathering all of the evidence she can and compiling her report.”

Richardson is the chairwoman of Dracut's Board of Selectman and active in the state's Republican party.

According to investigators, a Dracut Animal Control Officer first visited Richardsons' farm in early March after receiving complaints about the care of the horses.

Neighbors didn't want to speak on camera, but told FOX25 they had previously seen horses escape from the farm in the past, and had to be brought back onto the property.

MSPCA officials said the horses were malnourished to the point that their spines and hips were showing, and that an older mare had sores covered her body.

“The officer was concerned about the conditions in which they were being held, and the overall thin and poor body conditions,” Halpin said.

According to investigators, MSCPA and Animal Control returned to the farm several times over the next month to address concerns about access to food and water, and eventually Richardson agreed to surrender the horses.

“She is well known in town, and the family is well known,” said resident Debbie DeWitt. “To hear that she would be accused of something like that, I'm very surprised. She seems like a very nice person, and it just seems very out of character for her.”

FOX25 went to Richardson's farm seeking comment Tuesday, but a man at her home called police after the reporter knocked on the front door.

Hours later, Richardson issued this statement to FOX25 about the abuse allegations:

“It has come to my attention that a resident and former selectman has used a recent personal situation at my farm for political purposes. In my opinion, this is no more than a vicious personal attack, with errors embedded in the 'facts.' I did recently make a heartbreaking decision to voluntarily surrender two senior horses and donate a third healthy horse to Nevins Farm after analyzing damages and complications from a difficult and stressful winter and conferring with Nevins Farm staff over a 15 day period. In fact, the two senior horses were rescue animals that I took in almost 20 years ago. Two horses remain with me and are doing well. This personal attack not only affects me , but also my daughter who attends our public school system and the town staff. I am saddened and angered that social media was used in an effort to discredit me without concern for the town, its staff or my family, especially my little girl. It is part of the reason that people are hesitant to run for office or serve on committees. It is my hope that the individuals who are involved venture on to another topic that is truly uplifting to our town and focus their energies and use of social media on something productive for our town's best interests.”

Cox Media Group