VIDALIA &8212; An attempt by Debbie Palmer to force the Concordia Parish Police Jury into helping her get her horses back has been put on hold, her lawyer said.

The reason, Paul Lemke said, was an order issued by Seventh District Judge Leo Boothe earlier that day.

It was then that Boothe ordered the 43 horses seized from Palmer on April 4 and 6 to be returned to her pending the outcome of a May 24 hearing.

&8220;That eliminated the need for the mandamus order, as long as it is complied with,&8221; he said.

At the end of Monday&8217;s policy jury meeting, Palmer told jurors she was prepared to file a writ of mandamus, which is a tool to force compliance with a court order.

She said 15 of the 43 seized horses had been taken off her property and not returned.

The animals were seized using evidence and work done by Lisa Smith, the parish&8217;s animal control officer.

The 15 missing horses are believed to be in foster care.

Smith declined to comment on the matter.

Such writs are usually used in civil cases. If they were to file one in this criminal matter, it would likely take more legal wrangling to decide if it could be enforced.

Boothe&8217;s order, which came after an April 26 hearing, came in response to a motion filed by Lemke to set bond for the seized property, something he claimed had not been done.

It included a stipulation that Concordia Parish Sheriff&8217;s Office Investigator Dennis Cowan inspect weekly both the animals and the fences on the property are maintained properly.

She is to pay $100 per week to the CPSO for the service.

&8220;There are two things we want to accomplish,&8221; Boothe said in the hearing&8217;s transcript. &8220;Number one, we want to make sure these animals are cared for properly. Number two, we want to make sure they&8217;re not running at large on the highway.&8221;

It is on those charges &8212; but on different animals &8212; that Boothe has tried Palmer on already.

On April 12, Boothe found her guilty of three counts of animals at large. Three other counts were found not to fit the statute they were prosecuted under and were dismissed.

May 24 will be a busy day. Palmer will be sentenced on her convictions and also tried on ten counts of animals at large and one count of simple criminal damage to property, charges unrelated to the 43 seized horses.

The statute under which Palmer was convicted &8212; LA Revised Statute 3:2803 &8212; does not call for jail time, making a fine and/or community service a likely penalty.

If he wants to charge Palmer for any crimes relating to the 43 horses that were seized and now returned, Assistant District Attorney Andy Magoun will likely file a bill of information doing so soon.

He could not be reached for comment.

Lemke has two other motions to be heard on May 24, one a motion to quash and suppress all evidence associated with the search warrants used to seize the horses. He has also requested a preliminary hearing to determine whether she can be released from her $25,000 property bond.