BELLAIRE — Authorities couldn't convince an Antrim County jury that an East Jordan man neglected dozens of animals.
A jury this week found Michael Peters, 34, not guilty of a felony count of abandoning or being cruel to 10 or more animals. The jury also declined to convict Peters of a lesser misdemeanor charge tied to alleged animal abuse.
Antrim County sheriff's officials began investigating Peters in July and arrested him in September after they said he neglected rabbits, chickens, horses and other animals on a 5-acre lot near Elmira. Dozens of the animals were seized and temporarily housed in the county's animal control facility.
Jeff Slocombe, Peters' attorney, said authorities displayed a "shoot first and ask questions later" mentality about the animals' well-being.
Peters -- who raised rabbits and other animals for sale -- provided quality care all along, Slocombe said.
"Our whole contention is that there never was an adequate investigation done in this case," he said.
Peters, who now lives in a homeless shelter in Gaylord, put his head down on a courtroom table and cried after the verdict was read, Slocombe said.
"He was extremely relieved," he said. "To him, it's been a six-month nightmare."
Antrim Sheriff Dan Bean said his office did plenty of work on the case, including follow-up investigative efforts requested by the prosecutor's office.
Bean still believes Peters neglected the animals and is disappointed with the verdict.
"Sometimes we win, sometimes we lose," he said. "It's my personal opinion that it's a shame it came back as a not guilty verdict."
Slocombe called witnesses who testified that Peters had plenty of food and water for the animals.
"There are a lot of people who went with him to his facilities on a regular basis to see that he was giving them adequate care," he said.
A horse on the property that was in poor shape had been given to Peters to rehabilitate, Slocombe contends. That horse was put down because it had an infected hoof and couldn't walk properly.
Slocombe acknowledged that some animals were dead when authorities inspected the property.
Peters couldn't be reached for comment.
