ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, March 29, 1997 TAG: 9703310017
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: FLOYD
SOURCE: LISA K. GARCIA THE ROANOKE TIMES
Deputies say they have repeatedly warned Joe Stewart that a fence needed to be mended and that horses in the road caused a major hazard to motorists and the animals.
A long-time member of the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors was directly indicted in Floyd County for having horses running loose on Virginia 615.
Joe Stewart owns hundreds of acres in the county, according to court records. The fence line on one 217-acre tract he purchased in the late 1960s has been a problem for years, said Floyd County Commonwealth's Attorney Gino Williams.
Horses from Stewart's property, which lies adjacent to Virginia 615 (old Christiansburg Turnpike) just outside the town limits, have been found in the road numerous times over at least the last two years, Williams said.
Deputies have repeatedly warned Stewart that the fence needed to be mended and that the horses in the road caused a major hazard to motorists and the animals, Williams said.
"We've had two or three instances where people barely avoided [car] accidents," he said.
The county directly indicted Stewart March 5 on three counts of animals running at large. Each charge is a Class One misdemeanor, which carries a maximum punishment of 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine, according to Williams.
Williams said the charges represent only the last three times Stewart's horses were found in the road. The indictments list the dates of Dec. 23, 1996, and Jan. 28 and Feb. 16, 1997.
Stewart said the indictments were the first indication he'd had that there was a problem, according to his attorney, B.K. Cruey. Stewart's animals got out on a couple of occasions, Cruey said, but not because his fence was not being maintained.
"He told me his fence was sabotaged a couple of times," Cruey said.
Cruey said his reaction to the indictment is that he believes his client is being charged under the wrong statute and that the statute itself is improper and does not spell out a penalty.
Stewart, 82, has been a supervisor for more than 16 years and recently announced he would run for a fifth four-year term. The fiscal conservative is known for a sharp tongue and going against the majority on the board. He is also known for fighting charges of minor legal infractions and once told a Montgomery County deputy "he would rather go to jail" than sign a ticket.
In January, Stewart and an attorney went to Montgomery County General District Court to fight a $15 ticket issued to Stewart because he did not have a county decal on his truck. Stewart had called the incident "plum damn silly" at a supervisors' meeting and said "over-action on the deputy sheriff's part was to blame."
Stewart could not be reached for comment about the charges in Floyd. He is scheduled to appear in Floyd County Circuit Court April 15.
LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: (headshot) Stewartby CNB