Putting the Hurt on Horse Soring

Building on the public outrage accompanying several high profile prosecutions of horse soring, Reps. Ed Whitfield (R-KY) and Steve Cohen (D-TN) introduced legislation to strengthen the Horse Protection Act (HPA). Among other provisions, H.R. 6388 would end the corrupt and ineffectual system of self-policing of horse shows by horse industry organizations, make the act of soring a horse illegal (currently it is illegal only to transport, show, or sell a sored horse), and strengthen penalties under the HPA.