Bar patron gets thrown in jail after punching a police horse in Savannah, Georgia

Bar patron gets thrown in jail after punching a police horse in Savannah, Georgia

Posted by: Lynn Vance Lawenforcement today

A bar patron in Savannah, Georgia learned a hard lesson after punching a police horse.

Many people fail to realize that a mounted police officer’s horse is every bit as much a member of the police department as the human officer riding it. This also means assaulting one of thesepolice horses can come with some heavy consequences.

Savannah Police Department reported that a bar patron slapped a police horse after being told to leave the establishment.

While the horse did not respond to the attempted insult, the police officers did. The horse-hitter was arrested, marking the first arrest by the new officers on the force.

Police officials say that while assault on a police horse is rare, it does happen. If the assault causes bodily injury to the horse, it is a felony. Otherwise, it is a misdemeanor.

The offense is punishable by a fine or jail time, but police say they have had some offenders work off the fine by scooping manure in the horse stables.

Many areas, such as Savannah and New Orleans, have areas where several bars are located closely together. These areas are often patrolled by mounted officers. While the human officers enjoy speaking to patrons and passersby, they usually do not encourage petting their horses, which are also considered members of the police force.

Not any Horse qualifies as an officer, as Houston PD tells us:

The Houston Police Department Mounted Patrol has a unique combination of donated and purchased horses. At present, there are thirty-eight (38) horses in our herd. These horses represent many different breeds, some of which are: Percheron; Belgium; Quarter Horse; Hanoverian; Tennessee Walker; Dutch Warmblood; Thoroughbred; and Spotted Saddle Horse. There are currently thirty-two (32) police mounts assigned to patrol duty. Each officer is issued one mount and is responsible for the care and wellbeing of the horse. The extra horses are currently not assigned or are in training.  There are a few requirements that a horse must pass before the initial 90 day evaluation period. 

• Gelding or mare is accepted into the unit
• Minimum height of 15.2 hands
• Between the ages of two (2) years and fifteen (15) years
• Must be of gentle temperament
• Must pass a vet check

After the acceptance, the horse will go through a ninety (90) day evaluation and training phase. During the initial training/evaluation phase each horse will be assessed at the Mounted Facility and put through such obstacles as tarps, fireworks, and smoke. Also, the horse will be farther assessed while working alone and in groups with other mounted horses. Harassment and crowd control situations will be introduced at this point. Next, the horse and trainer will move outside the Mounted Facility to the major parks and Houston Intercontinental Airport.   After successful completion of these initial training phases the horse will then be exposed to the central business district. This downtown geographical area is very dynamic for training as there is major construction projects ongoing, continuous vehicular and pedestrian traffic, water obstacles, curbs, and ever changing terrain.     

Once a horse is accepted into the Mounted unit it will be assigned to an officer or supervisor.  Typically, we attempt to match a mount and rider based on the rider’s skill level.  Should an officer’s assigned horse be out of service, then one of our extra horses will be temporarily assigned to the rider.     

Should a horse, upon a negative evaluation, not be accepted into the Mounted unit then it shall be returned to the donor. If a horse is to be retired the original owner is given first opportunity to have the horse returned to its original home. If the original owner chooses not to accept the horse or is unavailable, then a suitable home is located for the retired horse. We have a long list of horse lovers who are interested in accepting one of our retired police mounts.

After acceptance to the mounted unit the horse and rider will continue equine training. As a rule, the entire mounted unit has training once a month. During this training there is primarily equitation and ground training, formation, crowd control, harassment, and loud noise (fireworks, sirens, etc.) exercises. Also, all mounted officers and mounts must go through, and pass, a four (4) week Natural Horsemanship instructional class using Pat Parilli’s principles.  

In 2003 the Houston Police Department Mounted Patrol was the first unit to initiate a bare foot program for all law enforcement agencies in the United States and the program has proven to be a great success. We no longer utilize a farrier and over this period of time we have had very little hoof problems. Currently, there are four (4) mounted officers who have been trained in barefoot hoof trimming. These officers believe so much in this program that much of their learning of barefoot and trimming techniques was paid for out of their own pocket. Initially, when a horse’s hooves are trimmed we will utilize hoof boots until the sensitivity has dissipated. Over a period of time the hoof will strengthen and no longer require the boots. Our hoof boot of choice is the EasyCare, Inc., Old Mac G2.