Federal Court Dismisses Wyoming's Anti-Mustang Lawsuit

Second Anti-Mustang Lawsuit Dismissed in Recent Months

Cheyenne, WY (April 21, 2015) . . .Today, the U.S. District Court in Wyoming dismissed a lawsuit filed by the State of Wyoming against the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) seeking the removal of wild horses frompublic landsacross the state. Earlier this year, the Court granted intervenor status to the American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Preservation), The Cloud Foundation, Return to Freedom, and wild horse photographers Carol Walker and Kimerlee Curyl. Intervenors promptly filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit against theBLM.

The Court stated in its decision that “the Court agrees withBLMand Intervenors. At this time there is no discrete action required byBLMand the management of wild horses on federal land throughout Wyoming is properly left to the sound discretion ofBLMwithout judicial entanglement.”

“We are pleased that the Court declined to allow this blatant attempt by the State to scapegoat the small number of wild horses that remain in Wyoming to benefit ranchers. The Court reaffirmed theBLM’s discretion to determine what actions are needed to achieve the agency’s objective to maintain a thriving natural ecological balance and that removing horses is not mandated,” said Caitlin Zittkowski ofMeyer, Glitzenstein & Crystal, the Washington, D.C. public interest law firm which represented AWHC, The Cloud Foundation, Return to Freedom, Ms. Walker and Ms. Curyl in the case.

Just last month, theFederal Court in Nevada granted AWHC’s motion to dismissin a similar lawsuit filed on behalf of ranchers that sought the removal of thousands of wild horses frompublic lands. That case was dismissed with prejudice.

The State of Wyoming lawsuit sought the removal of hundreds of wild horses frompublic landsin Wyoming, a state where fewer than 2,500 wild horses remain. Statewide, Wyoming’s wild horse population levels are far below the high “Allowable” Management Level of 3,722 wild horses, a number established byBLMland use plans.

National opinion polls indicate that72 percent of Americans support protecting wild horses on public landswhilejust 29 percent want public lands used for livestock grazing.

In Wyoming, wild horse numbers are dwarfed by the number of livestock grazing onpublic landsat taxpayer expense. Fewer than 2,500 wild horses remain on just 3.2 million acres of public rangeland, while hundreds of thousands of livestock graze 18 million acres of public land in the state. Put another way, wild horses are present in Wyoming on just 2 percent of theBLMland grazed by livestock.

The American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign)is a coalition of more than 50 horseadvocacy, public interest, and conservation organizations dedicated to preserving the American wild horse in viable, free-roaming herds for generations to come, as part of our national heritage.

The Cloud Foundationis a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and protection of wild horses and burros on our Westernpublic landswith a focus on protecting Cloud’s herd in the Pryor Mountains of Montana. Cloud is the subject of Foundation founder Ginger Kathrens' groundbreaking PBS/Nature documentaries.

Return to Freedom(RTF) is a national non-profit dedicated to wild horse preservation through sanctuary, education and conservation, and also operates the American Wild Horse Sanctuary in Lompoc, CA. It is also AWHC’s founding organization.

Carol WalkerandKimerlee Curylare renowned wild horse photographers who regularly photograph the wild horses of the Adobe Town, Great Divide Basin and Salt Wells Creek HMAs. Walker is also a board member for the Wild Horse Freedom Federation.

The American Wild Horse Conservation, The Cloud Foundation, Return to Freedom, John Steele, and Lisa Friday are being represented by the public interest Washington D.C. law firm ofMeyer Glitzenstein & Crystal.

Read more about the lawsuit here.