"I believe this defendant is in dire need of counseling," Cook County Judge Thomas Fecarotta said as he handed down his sentence for Esbin Cal-Orozco yesterday.
The former groomer at the Arlington Park Racetrack was convicted last month of having sexual contact with an animal, after a filly at the track was found tied awkwardly in her stall, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Cal-Orozco admitted to police at the time that he had fondled the horse, but that he "stopped himself" from going any further. And he denied abusing animals in the past.
After his conviction in January, the ex-groomer could have faced up to three years in prison. Instead, he received credit for the five months he'd already served since his arrest and was sentenced to two years in probation. Additionally, he will receive the sex offender counseling Judge Fecarotta said he was in such dire need of.
The horse, whose name, the Chicago Tribune reports, is "Buzz My Bell," was not injured, and has continued to race.