CHILTON COUNTY, Ala. (WBRC/Gray News) – Police say a man was arrested for allegedly injuring two horses and almost their owners in a drive-by shooting.
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The owners are thankful that they and their horses are still alive but are now pushing for justice.
“I don’t understand why someone would do that, you know, Friday evening just driving down the road shooting at animals. They were aiming at our horses and also at us,” stated Peggy Verdonck Riley.
Riley said it happened on her and her husband’s 13-acre farm along County Road 350 in Clanton, Alabama.
The couple was feeding their horses in the pasture around 5 p.m. when they heard multiple gunshots coming from the dirt road.
“I basically dropped down out of instinct. You know, laid down, and one of the horses jumped over top of me because she was spooked,” said Riley.
Riley says law enforcement found 11 gun shell casings on the scene.
While the couple was spared, the animals were not as lucky.
Joy, one of the horses, was shot near the left shoulder and has muscle damage. Milah, the other horse, was shot in the right knee. Thankfully, both are expected to survive.
“This could have ended really bad. Like, if it was just a little lower and a little more to the back on that horse that was shot in the shoulder, it would have probably hit the heart, lungs or intestines,” Riley said.
The couple says the shooter was firing out of a dark SUV.
On Saturday, the Chilton County Sheriff’s Office charged 28-year-old Steven Robertson with two counts of killing or disabling livestock, two counts of reckless endangerment, and being in a public place under the influence.
“It makes us feel really unsafe. You know, I’m out here working, and every car that comes by, I’m like – you know, is it going to happen again? I’m a little jumpy, to be honest. But I have to take care of my horses,” Riley said.
The couple said their lives revolve around their horses, and they are thankful they survived.
Riley said they are taking care of their horses with antibiotics and pain medicine and have scheduled X-rays to see more on their injuries.
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