A Bayfield County man who faced almost 60 charges for keeping horses in “atrocious” conditions will spend 30 days in jail and receive one year of probation.
On Aug. 14, Barron County Circuit Court Judge Maureen D. Boyle found Kim Kolpin Kingsley guilty on three felony counts of mistreating animals and two misdemeanor counts of intentionally failing to provide proper food and shelter to horses in the town of Bell from May through early June last year.
Under a settlement agreement with Bayfield County District Attorney Kim Lawton, Kingsley pleaded no contest to the three felony and two misdemeanor counts, but judgment was withheld on three felony charges. If Kingsley successfully completes his probation and follows all the conditions of the agreement for 18 months, those three counts would be dismissed.
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The judge dismissed all the remaining charges.
Kingsley is barred from owning any animals unless approved by the Department of Corrections, and he must complete a mental health assessment or any other counseling required by the agency. He must also pay $931.20 in fines and court costs.
Kingsley had faced four felony charges for mistreatment of animals, 14 misdemeanor counts of intentional or negligent treatment of animals and 40 misdemeanor counts of failing to provide either proper food or shelter to animals. Kingsley faced up to $10,000 in fines or up to 6 months in prison for each felony charge. Each misdemeanor charge carried a penalty of up to $10,000 or up to nine months in jail.
On July 31, Kingsley sold 13 mares, three yearlings and three foals for $200 to Robin Jones, who is a member of a Spanish Mustang preservation group. As a condition of the sale, Jones agreed to not permit Kingsley to reacquire the horses through any means. He is barred from owning the horses regardless of any future transfer or sale by the buyer.
Kingsley has been granted Huber release and a restitution hearing is set for Friday.
Authorities found starved horses, skeletal remains
According to a criminal complaint, Bayfield County dispatch received a welfare call on two horses at a property where Kingsley kept 50 to 75 Spanish Mustang horses in the town of Bell on May 20, 2024. An animal control officer investigated and observed no food or shelter over the course of two days, saying it didn’t appear there was sufficient food for any horse in the corral.
In a follow-up inspection, a veterinarian went with law enforcement to assess the condition of Kingsley’s horses on June 5, 2024. They examined five penned areas where horses had no food and little water with no shelter to protect from predators in the wooded area. They found a horse with an “odor of necrotic tissue” and a foal with a large visible wound. Another mare that appeared to be carrying a foal had visible ribs.
The veterinarian recommended the removal of two dozen horses, as well as others on the property. On June 7, the Bayfield County Sheriff’s Office executed a warrant and seized 16 horses. Authorities could not capture the remaining horses, including the foal with a large wound. The veterinarian said the horses were being kept in “atrocious” conditions. Pens containing several stallions had “mud and feces” two feet deep with no food, water or shelter.
“Not only did the three stallions in pens not have food, water, or shelter, but the 16 horses that were seized and the ones remaining in the fields also did not have those necessities,” the complaint states. “There were skeletal remains of horses scattered around the property. There had been ongoing predation issues of horses on that property.”
The complaint states the horses were easy prey for predators like wolves and coyotes.
“All of the horses on the property were subjected to conditions that created a risk of death or great bodily harm that was unreasonable and substantial due to the lack of food, water, and shelter,” the complaint states.
While executing the warrant, Kingsley reportedly told officers “there was nothing wrong with the horses” and the conditions were “tough out there but it’s not the end of the world.” He claimed to be feeding the horses every day, although he admitted to not feeding a mare and colt for a day-and-a-half.
Of the horses seized, a vet determined more than half experienced unnecessary pain, suffering or injury. Some horses tested positive for Lyme disease and anaplasmosis or faced other deformities from lack of hoof maintenance and disfigurement of the mouth and teeth. For seven horses, the vet expressed strong concern of refeeding syndrome, which occurs with increased nutrition following a prolonged period of starvation.
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