President’s Message:
Justice for Racehorse Finish Line
At last. On the morning of July 7, in Orange County Court, justice was finally achieved for the racehorse Finish Line who had to be euthanized because of the brutal beating inflicted by horse trainer Frederick Bourgault
The sentencing hour had arrived. Those of us present in court for Finish Line were hoping that the final entreaties made that morning on behalf of the convicted horse killer by his attorney would not sway Judge Guertin – they did not. In fact, the Judge seemed a bit miffed that the attorney had intimated that the Judge might have allowed himself to be swayed by the social media chatter about the case, in particular postings on Facebook. In fact, Judge Guertin said that not only was he not swayed by Facebook posts, he was not a subscriber to Facebook at all.
The Judge went on to issue a combined sentence of two to six years in state prison. In addition, Bourgault must pay $5,000 in restitution. When he completes his sentence, prosecutors reminded Bourgault that based on an Orange County Local Law knowns as “Rocky’s Law,” he must register with the Animal Abuse Registry maintained by the Orange County Sheriff within five days of his release from custody.
In addition to having caused the death of Finish Line, Bourgault, around the same timeframe, attempted to cause physical injury to a woman and subsequently pleaded guilty to Attempted Assault in the Second Degree. Bourgault is scheduled to be sentenced for that offense on October 2, 2025, and the prosecution is asking for a state prison sentence. So hopefully that sentence will run consecutively to the sentence on Finish Line.
This entire series of events is an excellent example of the recognized correlation between animal abuse and human violence. We can only hope he is in prison for a long time to prevent him from abusing more animals and people.
We again are thankful to the Orange County DA’s Office for the great job they did, along with the outstanding work of the State Police Investigators, without whom Finish Line would never have achieved this degree of justice. These committed people, including the tipster who brought the death to the attention of State Police, made all the difference.
We too can help animals in neglectful and abusive situations. As the saying goes, if you see something, say something — to your local authorities, be that the SPCA or the police. When you call, be sure to note the facts: who, what, where and when and be specific. That is of most importance. Be specific, persevere, and you can help bring rescue and relief to an animal.
Be kind to animals,
Patricia Valusek
New York State Humane Association Humane Review, Vol.XLVI, Fall 2025.