Late last week, the B.C. Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) submitted its findings to Crown counsel recommending that charges be laid against the owner of two horses abandoned in McBride in September, Edmonton lawyer Frank Mackay.

The SPCA recommended that Mackay be charged under both the Criminal Code of Canada and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act (PCA).

Under the PCA act, which only applies in B.C., offenders can face “a six month jail sentence, a $5,000 fine and a prohibition up to a lifetime from owning animals,” said Shawn Eccles, chief animal protection officer with the SPCA. 

According to Eccles, the PCA act is an easier offence to prove. “We just have to prove that the offence occurred, which in this case is that the animal was in distress and that the owner responsible for the animals was aware of it and allowed it to occur,” he said.

Under the criminal code, an offence is more difficult to prove because intent must be demonstrated. 

Since the SPCA also determined that the horses, Belle and Sundance, will not be returned to Mackay, they are currently in the process of finding them a new home. 

When contacted Tuesday, Mackay said, “my lawyers tell me to keep my mouth shut and not talk to anybody. I can’t tell you anything.”