Ninth Circuit Appeals Court Upholds Dismissal of Rancher Anti-Mustang Lawsuit

American Wild Horse Conservation Scores Another Major Legal Victory for Wild Horses & Burros in the West

San Francisco, CA (April 2, 2017) . . .Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Franciscouphelda lower court’s dismissal of a lawsuit filed by the Nevada Association of Counties (NACO), the Nevada Farm Bureau, Nevada Big Horns, and Crawford Cattle seeking the removal of thousands of wild horses frompublic landsin the state.

On April 2, 2014, the U.S. District Court in Nevada Judge Miranda Dugrantedthe American Wild Horse Conservation (formerly American Wild Horse Campaign), author Terri Farley, and photographer Mark Terrell the right to intervene in the case. On May 29, AWHC et alfiled a motion to dismissin the case. On March 12, 2015, Judge Miranda Dugrantedthe intervenors’ motion to dismiss the case “with prejudice,” meaning the plaintiffs could not amend or re-file it.

NACO and the Farm Bureau appealed Judge Du’s decision to the Ninth Circuit Appeals Court. The Ninth Circuit today upheld the lower court’s decision, affirming that the NACOet al. lawsuit – which also sought to force the sale for slaughter of the tens of thousands of captured wild horses in holding facilities – had no legal merit. In particular, the Ninth Circuit found that “NACO seeks judicial oversight and direction of virtually the entire federal wild horse and burro management program in Nevada,” which is not the judiciary’s role.

“This decision should help put a stop to baseless lawsuits from thelivestockindustry aiming to force the federal government to round up federally protected wild horses across the West,” said Nick Lawton, ofMeyer Glitzenstein and Eubanks, the public interest law firm representing the American Wild Horse Conservation, Ms. Farley, and Mr. Terrell. “We’re pleased that the Courts continue to dismiss attempts by these grazing interests to use the judicial system to rewrite federal law that Congress designed toprotectwild horses from capture, not to favor thelivestockindustry.”

Filed on behalf of Nevada ranchers, who graze their private cattle and sheep on Americanpublic landsthat they lease at well-below market rates, the NACO lawsuit sought to compel theBLMto immediately round up and remove more than 6,000 wild horses from Nevadapublic lands, conduct wild horse and burro roundups every two months in the state, and to “auction, sell or otherwise dispose of” the 50,000 wild horses and burros currently stockpiled in government warehousing facilities.

According to AWHC, the NACO lawsuit was part of a broader strategy by ranchers to use the courts to compel theBLMto remove an increasing number of wild horses frompublic landsand sell captured wild horses for slaughter. AWHC has been granted the right to intervene in similar lawsuits in Utah and Wyoming.

Last year, AWHC and its coalition partners won two important legal victories, when the Tenth Circuit Court of Appealsdismisseda similar lawsuit by the State of Wyoming andaffirmeda lawsuit filed by AWHC, et al against theBLMfor illegal actions related to the 2015 roundup of over 1,000 wild horses frompublic landsin Wyoming.

For more information on this legal action, pleaseclick here.

TheAmerican Wild Horse Conservation (AWHC)(formerly known as the American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign) is dedicated to preserving the American wild horse in viable, free-roaming herds for generations to come, as part of our national heritage. Its grassroots mission is endorsed by a coalition of more than 60 horseadvocacy, humane and public interest organizations.

Terri Farleyis a full-time author who lives in the Reno area and spends a significant amount of time observing wild horses, both on the range and in the holding facilities. She is the author of the Phantom Stallion book series, which has sold over a million copies worldwide. Her latest book, Wild at Heart:Mustangsand the Young People Fighting to Save Them was released in 2015 and has received numerous scholastic and scientific awards.

Mark Terrellowns the Dayton-basedWild Horses of Nevada Photography. He is a nationally known wild horse photographer and operator of tours that provide visitors with the opportunity to view, experience, and photograph the wildhorses of Nevada.