Horse Breeder Gets Jail Time
Yes! Ernie Paragallo, the jerk thoroughbred breeder who starved more than 175 horses on his farm in New York’s Hudson Valley, has been sentenced to up to two years in prison and fined $30,000. In addition, he must pay restitution to humane groups that cared for the horses after they were seized. Of course, the fine is just a drop in the (oat) bucket for a former Goldman Sachs exec who netted more than $20 million during the 20 years that he bred and raced horses, but that jail time’s gotta hurt.
“Your moral compass is out of kilter,” Judge George Pulver Jr. told Paragallo as he handed down the maximum sentence. “Your sense of integrity, your code of conduct, your perception of right and wrong was perhaps formed by your days on either mean streets or Wall Street.”
Coming in the midst of the Triple Crown season, the sentencing serves as a timely reminder to stay away from racetracks and the cruelty to horses that’s associated with them. Here’s hoping that Paragallo gets nothing but bread and water during his stay in the pokey—and even that’s more than his horses got.
Written by Alisa Mullins
