A breeder from Lozère was sentenced to 105 hours of community service by the criminal court of Mende. He had left his goats and sheep to die on an isolated farm in the Causse Méjean.
Alerted by a friend of the breeder who was worried about the deterioration of his mental health, the gendarmes had discovered the rotting corpses of more than 300 sheep and goats. Goats and sheep had been deprived of food and water “while there was enough fodder left,” said the public prosecutor of Mende, Vincent Blériot, during the trial. Only 71 animals survived. Some, dying, had to be euthanized.
The defendant describes to the hearing his “descent into hell”
At trial, the defendant described to the audience his “descent into hell” during the winter of 2020-2021 where his “dream” collapsed in the face of adversity, loneliness, growing isolation and reports of more and more conflicting with its neighboring farmers or its agricultural union.
The prosecutor demanded an admission of guilt, for the principle, as well as a sentence of community service. “When you’re a breeder, you don’t just have responsibility for yourself, but also for the livestock,” he said. Failing to execute his sentence within 18 months, he will have to serve two months in prison.