The Devil’s Garden Wild Horse Territory in the Modoc National Forest contains one of California’s largest and most significant remaining mustang populations. Despite being protected under federal law, these horses have been under attack.

In 2012, the U.S. Forest Service, which manages the Devil’s Garden Wild Horse Territory, significantly reduced the size of the mustangs’ habitat. AWHC sued, joined by Return to Freedom and advocate Carla Bowers. Represented by the Animal Legal Defense Fund and our legal team at Meyer Glitzenstein and Eubanks, we prevailed last October when the DC Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the Forest Service’s decision to cut out the middle section of the territory.

Fast forward to 2018, and livestock permittees in Devil’s Garden have filed a lawsuit against the Forest Service, seeking the immediate removal of over 2,000 wild horses from their home on the range in the Modoc National Forest.  AWHC has again teamed up with the Animal Legal Defense Fund and Ms. Bowers, represented again by Meyer Glitzenstein and Eubanks, we filed a motion to intervene in the case. Our goal is to defend the interests of this federally protected wild horse herd and ensure that the government does not strike an unfair deal with the ranchers that will harm the horses. Our vision for the Devil’s Garden wild horses is a humane management program that all stakeholders can support and be involved in; that won’t be possible if the ranchers succeed in forcing the massive roundup of these beautiful mustangs.

LEGAL DOCUMENTS:

• Plaintiffs' Amended Complaint
• Intervenor Filed Answer To Amended Complaint
• Intervenor's Status Report
• Renewed Motion to Intervene
• Parties Joint Status Report 
• Memo in Support of Motion for Summary Judgment
• Motion for Summary Judgment
• Response to Defendants' Statement of Facts
• Response to Plaintiffs' Statemnt of Facts
• Statement of Facts
• Federal Defendants' Combined Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment
• Memo in Support
• Declaration of Thomas Walter Frolly
• Feds' Statement of Facts
• Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment
• Memo in Support of Motion for Summary Judgment
• Declaraton of Bill Wilson
• Exhibit 1
• Declaration of Jess Dancer
• Plaintiff's Notice of Request for Hearing on Motion for Summary Judgment
• Proposed Order Granting Request for Hearing
• Plaintiff's Statement of Undisputed Facts
• Exhibit 2
• Request for a Ruling on Motion to Intervene
• Motion to Intervene
• Motion in Support of Motion to Intervene
• Declaration of Suzanne Roy
• Declaration of Steven Wells
• Declaration of Carla Bowers
• Government Reply In Support Of Motion To Alter Schedule
• Filed Intervenors Reply In Support Of Defendants' Motion To Alter Schedule
• Plaintiff Objections To Intervenors Reply In Support Of Defendants