Former Sisters woman arrested for neglect

Responding to an anonymous tip, Marion County deputies executed a search warrant, seized control of 16 neglected horses and arrested their owner on Tuesday afternoon, May 3.

The horses were found in a pasture and a barn on property in the 6800 block of Skyline Road South, in Salem.

Deputies Brenda Lumley and Martin Bennett arrested Gabriel Elle Buckner, 52, on 16 counts of Animal Neglect II. She was being held in the Marion County Jail on $20,000 bail.

As part of the investigation, Deputy Lumley assessed the condition of the horses. They ranged from 1 to 3 on a body condition scale with 1 being the worse condition and 4-5 being the best. The horses suffered from weight loss, skin infections and hoof neglect.

The horses were thoroughbreds and quarter horses, but also included a Missouri Fox Trotter mare that was in foal, and other mares that may be in foal.

Deputy Lumley's investigation revealed that Buckner is on court-probation in Deschutes County for a 2010 conviction of animal neglect involving horses. Buckner was known in Sisters by the name Gabriel Dennison.

Buckner was also convicted for animal neglect in 1998 involving dogs and cats.