Little girl scores incredible victory after her pet goat was butchered and barbecued by California county

A nine-year-old miss scored an awesome triumph successful her combat for justness aft her beloved favored goat was taken by California region deputies, butchered and barbecued. 

The ordeal unfolded erstwhile Cedar the goat was seized arsenic portion of a programme intended to thatch youngsters however to attraction for workplace animals.

Two years later, pursuing a bitter ineligible dispute, Shasta County has agreed to wage $300,000 to the girl's household to settee the quality implicit the beast. 

'Unfortunately, this litigation cannot bring Cedar home,' Vanessa Shakib, an lawyer representing the household said. 'But the $300,000 colony with the County of Shasta and Shasta County Sheriff's Office is the archetypal measurement forward.'

Jessica Long bought Cedar, a seven-month-old achromatic Boer, successful April 2022 and the carnal soon formed an attachment to her nine-year-old girl - who fed and cared for it everyday.

However, the household decided to participate Cedar into the Shasta District Fair's inferior livestock auction connected June 24, 2022 - wherever the animals are sold disconnected to beryllium utilized arsenic meat.

But, agelong earlier the auction started, the household changed their minds and wanted to instrumentality Cedar disconnected the ticket. The just denied the petition and sold it - truthful the ma brazenly stole the goat backmost earlier it was fixed to the buyer.

What followed was a chaotic goat pursuit - sending officers hundreds of miles crossed the region to retrieve the goat via a hunt warrant, earlier handing it to individuals who are believed to person killed Cedar and roasted him connected a barbecue for their guests.

But, adjacent with their caller triumph and committedness of the whopping sum, the Long household is inactive without answers arsenic it remains unclear who really butchered the goat, who was bought astatine the region just for $902.

Shakib said just and region officials have, passim the years-long proceedings, engaged successful 'obstructionist find tactics' to debar answering burning questions astir what really happened to the goat, and what relation officials played successful seizing and yet sidesplitting the much-loved animal.

'Years aboriginal this lawsuit inactive has respective unanswered questions,' Shakib said.

Text messages revealed during the national suit suggest that the fair's officials sought to conceal what really happened to Cedar and who was involved. 

B.J. Macfarlane, livestock manager for the Shasta Fair Association wrote successful a substance connection connected July 22, 2022, to Shasta Fair Chief Executive Melanie Silva: 'Kathy said good but nary 1 needs to cognize astir this.'

The connection referenced Kathie Muse, a unpaid for the 4-H programme and an organizer for the county's barbecue. 

'U maine and Kathy are lone ones. It got killed and donated to non nett if anyone asks,' Macfarlane added.

'We are a non profit,' Silva responded adding respective embarrassed and laughing emoticons. 

The Long family's attorneys person since argued that uncovering Cedar's butcher and who contacted instrumentality enforcement is captious to their case.

Long and her lawyer allegedly reached retired to sheriff, just and region officials earlier the goat was butchered claiming they were disputing ownership of the adored workplace animal.

Yet, idiosyncratic decided that Cedar beryllium seized and past killed contempt their cognition of an incoming lawsuit, Shakib said. 

County officials inactive contradict immoderate wrongdoing.

'The County did thing wrong, but we admit the hazard and outgo progressive successful going to trial, and truthful we agreed to settee the case,' Christopher Pisano, an lawyer for Shasta County, said successful an email to The Los Angeles Times. 

'We are blessed to beryllium moving connected and putting this lawsuit down us.'

Shakib said attorneys are inactive reviewing discovery, including telephone records, to effort to find retired what happened to Cedar as Long and her girl inactive person claims against Shasta District Fair employees and a 4-H volunteer.