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Barg loses pig appeal
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Man faces charges of having manure, scrap in his yard
By: JOYCE EDLEFSEN
jedlefsen@uvsj.com
ST. ANTHONY - A St. Anthony man lost an appeal in 7th District Court in a case involving his pigs.
And Fremont County has filed new charges against him for violating the county solid waste ordinance.
Virgil Barg, long the object of the county's cleanup efforts, had appealed a 2007 Fremont County jury verdict finding him guilty of allowing his pig to run free and damage private property.
In his appeal, Barg argued that the state failed to produce sufficient evidence to uphold the verdict, and he claimed the prosecutor made statements during the opening and closing arguments that amounted to prosecutorial misconduct.
In a memorandum decision, District Judge Brent Moss said just the opposite.
"The prosecution presented sufficient evidence," Moss said. And given that evidence, "a reasonable jury could return a guilty verdict finding that Mr. Barg negligently allowed a hog to run loose in violation of Idaho Code … "
And, Moss said, "Statements made by prosecutor did not amount to fundamental error."
He said Barg's lawyer had the opportunity to correct any perceived prejudice with "a timely objection and a ruling of the trial court directing the jury to disregard the statements, plus the jury instructions said that any arguments or statements of the parties were not evidence.
"… A rational trier of fact could have found all of the elements of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt," Moss said in his conclusion upholding the guilty verdict.
The verdict had found Barg guilty of allowing a pig to run freely, damaging property owned by his neighbors, Brett Mackert and Christine Scott, in May 2006.
Before the pig case appeal ruling, Fremont County filed new charges against Barg for violating the county's solid waste ordinance.
He faces four counts of the violation, one each for keeping manure piles, old tires, scrap metal and a dilapidated mobile home on his property located just off the north St. Anthony U.S. Highway 20 exchange.
The charges filed were similar to those Barg already had been convicted of, but he has not complied with the original orders to remove the offensive materials.
Magistrate Judge Keith Walker was disqualified from the case at the request of the defendant, and Magistrate Judge Robert L. Crowley Jr. disqualified himself from the case.
Barg has pleaded not guilty and requested a trial, but a court date has not been set.
And Fremont County has filed new charges against him for violating the county solid waste ordinance.
Virgil Barg, long the object of the county's cleanup efforts, had appealed a 2007 Fremont County jury verdict finding him guilty of allowing his pig to run free and damage private property.
In his appeal, Barg argued that the state failed to produce sufficient evidence to uphold the verdict, and he claimed the prosecutor made statements during the opening and closing arguments that amounted to prosecutorial misconduct.
In a memorandum decision, District Judge Brent Moss said just the opposite.
"The prosecution presented sufficient evidence," Moss said. And given that evidence, "a reasonable jury could return a guilty verdict finding that Mr. Barg negligently allowed a hog to run loose in violation of Idaho Code … "
And, Moss said, "Statements made by prosecutor did not amount to fundamental error."
He said Barg's lawyer had the opportunity to correct any perceived prejudice with "a timely objection and a ruling of the trial court directing the jury to disregard the statements, plus the jury instructions said that any arguments or statements of the parties were not evidence.
"… A rational trier of fact could have found all of the elements of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt," Moss said in his conclusion upholding the guilty verdict.
The verdict had found Barg guilty of allowing a pig to run freely, damaging property owned by his neighbors, Brett Mackert and Christine Scott, in May 2006.
Before the pig case appeal ruling, Fremont County filed new charges against Barg for violating the county's solid waste ordinance.
He faces four counts of the violation, one each for keeping manure piles, old tires, scrap metal and a dilapidated mobile home on his property located just off the north St. Anthony U.S. Highway 20 exchange.
The charges filed were similar to those Barg already had been convicted of, but he has not complied with the original orders to remove the offensive materials.
Magistrate Judge Keith Walker was disqualified from the case at the request of the defendant, and Magistrate Judge Robert L. Crowley Jr. disqualified himself from the case.
Barg has pleaded not guilty and requested a trial, but a court date has not been set.
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