All criminal charges have been dismissed in the case of Courtney and Nicole Mallery, Black ranchers in Colorado whose story of racial discrimination and harassment made headlines earlier this year, per Denver7.
The Mallerys were previously charged with felony stalking, tampering with a utility meter, and petty theft in connection to disputes with their neighbors and El Paso County Sheriff's Office deputies.
Prior to the charges, the Mallerys accused their predominately white neighbors of racism, vandalism of their property, and mutilation of their livestock.
"We are stalked, we are harassed, we are chased, we are followed, there's been spray paint where they put 'n*****' on items on our home," Nicole Mallery previously said.
Despite their attempts to work with the sheriff's office, the couple who alleged racial discrimination and harassment was arrested in February.
But after a months-long battle involving the NAACP and other social justice groups, the Mallerys' charges were dismissed on Thursday (May 11).
"Given evidence that the People have at this point, and the credibility of the witnesses, there is no likelihood for success at trial and therefore the People are moving to dismiss this case," Fourth Judicial District Attorney Michael Allen wrote in his motion to dismiss the cases.
“Justice delayed, justice served," Courtney Mallery said in response to the dismissal. "You know, it's, I'm happy that it got to this point. I always knew that it would get to this point because like I say, from the very beginning, we did nothing, we said nothing. And we've been, we were attacked by the sheriff's department and the local community."
The couple said they are moving forward, but still seek justice for their murdered animals.
“This is just one step toward justice. But we still have to get justice for our animals. They were part of our family. They were poisoned. It was done intentionally and maliciously. And Colorado is a state that loves animals, spoken from the governor's mouth. And so, we're still expecting to have that independent investigation done, and for the investigation of the poisoning of our animals and the attack on our ranch,” Nicole said.
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