ELLSWORTH, Maine — Sophia Johnston, who faces a civil charge of cruelty to animals, has reached a deal with prosecutors that will result in the charge being dismissed if she stays out of trouble for a year and pays $12,000 in restitution.
As part of the agreement, Johnston also is prohibited from ever owning equine animals again, according to documents filed in Hancock County Unified Criminal Court.
“[Johnston] agrees to a lifelong prohibition of owning, possessing or having and caring for on her premises any equine,” a written notice of the agreement indicates. Johnston agreed to the deal and signed the court document on May 19.
Johnston, formerly known as Sophia Pod, was charged with cruelty to animals last October when state humane agents removed 11 horses from her property on Route 1.
An official with the state Animal Welfare Program said this past February the state had received a complaint about the horses’ health and then had worked with Johnston for three years to try and address the issue prior to removing them last fall. All 11 horses have since been placed with other facilities around the state and their health has improved, the official said at the time.
Johnston purchased the 137-acre property, which is called Humble Horse Farm and includes a 32-stall horse barn, in May 2010 for $401,000.
Johnston acquired the property at a foreclosure auction after it had become entangled in a Ponzi-like financial scheme. Eric S. Murphy, the prior owner of the property, was convicted in July 2010 of two counts of theft by deception, one count of securities fraud and one count of forgery after he scammed investors in his home loan business out of more than half a million dollars.
According to court documents, Johnston agreed to pay $4,000 of the restitution order immediately upon signing the agreement and is expected to pay another $4,000 in November. The final $4,000 payment of her restitution, all of which is being paid to the Animal Welfare Program, would be due in May 2016.
Johnston’s defense attorney, Steve Juskewitch of Ellsworth, said Thursday that his client ran into some personal health issues and had difficulty hiring people to care for the animals.
“She wasn’t successful in getting people to do what they said they would do,” Juskewitch said.
He said Johnston thought she had found someone last fall to take and care for the horses and was surprised to hear they ended up in the custody of state animal welfare agents.
“She was distraught over the thought that people might believe she was not a good owner of horses,” Juskewitch said. “In her mind, she never gave up on her ability to take care of the animals.”
Attempts Thursday to contact Hancock County District Attorney Matthew Foster about the plea deal were unsuccessful.
