Jerry Lee Holly, owner of three zebras that escaped in Maryland in 2021, was found not guilty Wednesday of three counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty.
The three animal cruelty charges were for each of the three zebras that escaped from Holly’s Upper Marlboro farm in August 2021 and ran free for three months, giving a pandemic-addled region a dose of delight and capturing the nation’s attention. The saga turned dark, though, when one of the zebras was found dead in what appeared to be an illegal snare trap in a forest owned by the Girl Scouts.
Fast, informative and written just for locals. Get The 7 DMV newsletter in your inbox every weekday morning. The zebra trial was at least the sixth time Holly, 78, has faced criminal charges related to his animals, according to court records. In all but one of the previous cases he was found guilty.
The Post also found after reviewing more than 1,000 pages of inspection reports and court records related to Holly’s businesses that Holly for decades repeatedly failed to obtain all the permits required by local, state and federal agencies to breed, buy and sell wild and exotic animals in Maryland and Florida — two states where Holly operated animal business during the last 50 years.
Hours later, animal control officials charged Holly with the three counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty — arguing in court documents that Holly had neglected the animals by letting them escape and not capturing them in a timely fashion.
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