May 4, 2018 2 min read

CHARLEROI – A Mon Valley man might have shot and killed his neighbor’s horse because he was frustrated that her animals were frequently leaving her property, his attorney said Thursday.

“If someone is threatened by a horse, that could happen,” said Pittsburgh attorney Joseph Dominic Pometto, who is representing Timothy Ray Cain in the case.

“Think about it,” Pometto said after his client waived his case to Washington County Court before District Judge Larry Hopkins in Charleroi.

State police have filed charges of theft, aggravated cruelty to animals, cruelty to animals, neglect of animals and tampering with evidence against Cain. He is free on $25,000 unsecured bond.

Police accuse Cain, 57, of 18 Locust Grove Lane, Fallowfield Township, of using a shotgun to shoot a Gypsy Vanner horse twice during the night of April 8 and later dumping the animal on property he owns in West Virginia.

The horse was shot in the jaw and neck, causing fractured vertebrae, Trooper Adam J. Janosko said.

The horse, named Jasper, was owned by Stacey Gluth, who said she found no evidence of a break in her fence that would have allowed the animal to escape from her property.

“I’m a very responsible horse owner,” Gluth said.

“It hurts,” she said before crying about the loss of her 9-year-old animal.

Jasper was worth about $20,000.

Pometto said he expects his client will reach a plea agreement with prosecutors, avoiding a trial.

“He was cooperative with the police,” Pometto said.

Cain is scheduled to be formally arraigned on the charges at 1:30 p.m. June 28 in the Washington County Courthouse, online court records show.