Graham horse owner charged with animal cruelty
GRAHAM, Wash. -- A Graham man accused of keeping dozens of horses in deplorable conditions was charged Thursday with 10 counts of animal cruelty.
John Diller, 69, is accused of neglecting the 39 horses he kept on his 99 acre property. DEA agents executing a search warrant on the property in September found the horses and alerted Pierce County Animal Control.
"We are holding the owner accountable for cruelty to the animals," Prosecutor Mark Lindquist said in a news release. "And we are working with the Pierce County Auditor's Office to find good homes for the horses."
The horses were living in three run-down barns and paddocks filled with feces and urine. Prosecutors say most of the horses were underweight, had poor muscle tone and had overgrown and cracked hooves. The horses were seized and taken in for medical treatment, but eight of them had be euthanized for medical reasons or dangerous behavior.
In September, Brian Bowman with Animal Control said some of the horses lived in the dark.
"Lots of standing urine, feces… some of the barns where the horses were kept are pitch black," he said. "The horses have maybe a pin hole they can see out of for any kind of light, period."
Piece County has already spent more than $62,000 caring for the horses, though $17,000 of that came from public donations and in-kind donations, according to prosecutors.
Diller petitioned for the return of the horses, and in November a district judge found that he'd cleaned and repaired enough of his property to accommodate 15 horses. The judge allowed the return of 11 of the seized horses.
Speaking on his client's behalf after the seizure, Diller's attorney said his client loved and cared for all of his horses.
"He gets home from work and he spends the rest of his evening every single day working on behalf of those horses," said attorney Lance Hester.
Diller is set to be arraigned December 27, and prosecutors say they could still file more charges in the case.
John Diller, 69, is accused of neglecting the 39 horses he kept on his 99 acre property. DEA agents executing a search warrant on the property in September found the horses and alerted Pierce County Animal Control.
"We are holding the owner accountable for cruelty to the animals," Prosecutor Mark Lindquist said in a news release. "And we are working with the Pierce County Auditor's Office to find good homes for the horses."
The horses were living in three run-down barns and paddocks filled with feces and urine. Prosecutors say most of the horses were underweight, had poor muscle tone and had overgrown and cracked hooves. The horses were seized and taken in for medical treatment, but eight of them had be euthanized for medical reasons or dangerous behavior.
In September, Brian Bowman with Animal Control said some of the horses lived in the dark.
"Lots of standing urine, feces… some of the barns where the horses were kept are pitch black," he said. "The horses have maybe a pin hole they can see out of for any kind of light, period."
Piece County has already spent more than $62,000 caring for the horses, though $17,000 of that came from public donations and in-kind donations, according to prosecutors.
Diller petitioned for the return of the horses, and in November a district judge found that he'd cleaned and repaired enough of his property to accommodate 15 horses. The judge allowed the return of 11 of the seized horses.
Speaking on his client's behalf after the seizure, Diller's attorney said his client loved and cared for all of his horses.
"He gets home from work and he spends the rest of his evening every single day working on behalf of those horses," said attorney Lance Hester.
Diller is set to be arraigned December 27, and prosecutors say they could still file more charges in the case.
Oh, darn, I hope this isn't Doctor Diller, but everything fits, his age, and I know he has a horse farm in Graham, that is really sad, just wonder why he didn't hire someone to help care for these animals, it's not like he couldn't afford to hire help, darn, I hope I'm wrong about this.
 @MC Yes, it is him.
 @Diana Yokes Oh, that's really sad, Doctor Diller is a really nice man, that really makes me sad, I can hardly believe he would have let that happen.
I think the owner, judge and attorney should spend just one day in that filth. Have urine and feces up to their ankles. I bet they would change their tune. These poor animals spent a long time in these horrible conditions. That piece of junk should not even have one horse back. Good luck to the horses.
What are the judges name and the attorney? Would they send their kids or animals to this man for care?
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The problem I see with this case is that his attorney was smart enough to file the petition to get the horses back and get it heard in the court before he was charged. If the prosecutor had been on the ball and filed charges before the petition for return was filed then the petition for return would have been bound over into the criminal case and wouldn't have been resolved until the criminal case was completed. Ergo, no horses until either guilty or not guilty and if found guilty perhaps no horses for life depending on the severity of the case.
What nonsense. Why the heck would this guy, who has clearly demonstrated beyond-negligent behavior, be allowed to retain even ONE horse? What kind of oversight will he have, and what sort of protection will the horses have? I can't imagine that the judge knows squat about horses or their care to have made such a ruling.Â
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Good grief, does this stuff ever end?
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And way to go, Attorney. What a life you lead, defending the indefensible. Talk about a job where a lack of conscience goes a long way and stretching the truth is a way of life.
This man loved and cared for his horses? This lawyer must think that horses get in that condition overnight. Would he want to stand in his own feces and urine for months on end. This man should be punished for the deplorable conditions these horses were forced to live in. Hope they keep an eye on the ones he got back.
Well if he really loved and cared for him, he sure as hell didn't show it very well. If he can't handle that many by himself, then either get some help or start selling!
"Diller's attorney said his client loved and cared for all of his horses."
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Apparently he didn't care enough to actually take care of them. Seriously, there comes a point when you should realize you are in over your head. If your horse is severely underweight and standing in two feet of feces and urine, its clearly time to ask for help, sell the horses, or give them away.
I think 11 horses is too many for one senior citizen. I'm a senior and chasing one pound kitty and keeping his boxes clean seems enough for me. His 'love' would be better shown by giving the horses a better life - without him. Horses are huge, bucking hay bales is heavy work, likewise mucking stalls. Start him with one if you must.
Hopefully he'll be found guilty and prevented from owning "Like animals" for at least two years. That's part of the penalty the law states. IMO that should require him to not have the 11 he got back.
I sure hope that picture is the "before" conditions. The "after" had better be a whole lot better or whoever ok'd the return should be in major trouble!
 @katiemcc I don't care if it's as clean as the Taj Mahal now, he should not have gotten any of those horses back.  Especially now, before the arraignment.  And only if after the arraignment he is found to have true love for the horses but maybe the number to care for overwhelmed him, or he is senile, etc., then maybe he can have some horses back, but only if he hires a reputable full-time staff member to ride and/or exercise them regularly and assist with the horses overall care.
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 @katiemcc Yes, that is the before picture, saw it on the news when the impound occurred.