FILE PhotoSOMERVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - A state court trial of West Tennessee horse trainer Jackie McConnell has been postponed as attorneys try to reach a plea bargain.
According to The Jackson Sun, the case against the Collierville trainer was set over on Tuesday to Nov. 13.
McConnell is charged with 17 state misdemeanor charges of animal cruelty.
Defense attorney David Douglas called the case against his client complicated, but said he believes a plea deal can be struck.
An undercover video shot inside McConnell's training stable showed Tennessee Walking Horses being beaten and caustic chemicals being applied to their hoofs to force the exaggerated gait that wins horse shows.
On September 18, a federal judge in Chattanooga sentenced McConnell to three years' probation and fined him $75,000.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
