Dr. Cesar Parra, a member of the US Pan Am gold medal winning team, has been cleared of all charges surrounding an incident that occurred at his New Jersey training centre, Piaffe Performance, in June 2009.
Parra was charged with animal cruelty after a young stallion he was lunging reared up and fell over, permanently injuring itself. The owner alleged wrongdoing on Para’s part, while Parra contended that it was an unfortunate accident.
“I was profoundly saddened by the tragic accident, which solely resulted from circumstances unrelated to my conduct and beyond my control. While working on the lunge line, this horse reared, fell, and hit his head,” he stated. “Lunging a horse is a very common procedure and on that day in June three years ago, there was no action on my or my staff’s part that could possibly be considered atypical or detrimental to the horse. Regardless of a trainer’s best efforts to ensure an animal’s safety, accidents of this type can and do occur.”
On May 23rd, the prosecutor for Hunterdon County dismissed the charges after the investigation concluded that there was insufficient evidence to substantiate the charges.
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