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Friday, September 03, 2010
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Serving Maine and Lincoln County for over a century. |
Volume 135 Issue 35 |
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| 7/19/2010 1:39:00 PM | Email this article • Print this article | Pretrial Hearings Continue In Waldoboro Horse Abuse Case
By Samuel J. Baldwin
The Rockland man accused of causing the deaths of several horses under his care on a Waldoboro farm last fall appeared in Lincoln County Superior Court in Wiscasset July 16 for a pretrial motion to suppress evidence.
Donald Genthner, 51, is charged with 11 counts of animal cruelty, four felony charges and seven misdemeanors. If convicted, felony animal cruelty carries a maximum of five years in prison and fines up to $10,000.
Genthner and his attorney, Bob Rubin, argued Genthner's rights were violated when he was not instructed of his Miranda Rights during interviews with Waldoboro police as part of their investigation into the horses' deaths.
All evidence gathered as a result of two interviews in December 2009 should not be allowed at trial, Rubin argued.
Detective Lance Mitchell with the Waldoboro Police Dept. took the stand as a witness for the state, and said Genthner was not under arrest when those interviews took place, nor did the police have conclusive knowledge they were going to arrest Genthner during those interviews.
Under U.S. law, unless a suspect is under arrest, police do not need to advise the suspect of their Miranda rights. However, the suspect is free to decline the interview or leave at any time.
Mitchell advised Genthner of that fact, and he availed himself of that right at the conclusion of one of the interviews, Mitchell said. During the interviews, Mitchell also told Genthner, police were investigating the death of the horses under his care, Mitchell said.
Genthner was arrested in mid-January, several weeks after the last time he was interviewed by police.
Rubin argued police knew prior to at least one of the interviews they were going to arrest Genthner, and were therefore required to advise him of his rights prior to interviewing him.
Many statements Genthner made in the second interview helped police decide to arrest him, Mitchell said, but only after they conducted further investigation.
The hearing was continued until 10:30 a.m. July 26 to give Mitchell time to determine whether there is a recording of those interviews.
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