Men On Horseback Ride Through West Baltimore Neighborhoods

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Horses in the city. No, it's not a new program but a reality for a lot of people in west Baltimore this weekend as men on horseback rode through neighborhoods.

Christie Ileto has more on the reaction from people who saw it all.

A group of men on horses galloping through the streets is certainly not something most city residents are used to seeing but when folks in west Baltimore saw it Sunday, they welcomed the unique sight.

It's nothing to see cars and trucks driving down the street, but when a horse runs up beside your car, it raises a lot of questions.

"I saw the horses and I was, in fact, exhilarated," said Thomas Pinkston Harris.

The city says it's illegal to ride horses throughout Baltimore streets without approval; Commissioner Kevin Davis says the stunt is a public safety hazard.

"It's unsafe for pedestrians; it's unsafe for motorists; it's unsafe for those young men riding those horses," Davis said.

For many people in west Baltimore, they say it was like a scene out of a movie: men on horses, riding up and down streets in the area---there was even a horse-drawn buggy.

"I just came to the front porch and I just saw a crowd of them out there on the right-hand side, going up. There were people in the carriage and everything. I didn't know what was going on. There were a lot of people in the carriage. There were a lot of horses," said Ralph Wright.

Why did this happen? It's still the question for many people.

One man Tweeted, "The powers that be said, `You will not ride dirt bikes.' The streets said, `We'll ride horses instead.'"

"I think there are healthier, safer ways to protest," Davis said.

The city allows horse riding if you have a permit to arab or to exhibit animals. They're now investigating if those over the weekend had either. City law requires a person be 18 and have no animal cruelty convictions to get a license to ride a horse in Baltimore. Officials are now eying the viral videos to identify who's behind the lawlessness.

A lot of people say they really enjoyed the sight of the horses.

"I think what it did was give the kids something to see other than what they are accustomed to seeing," Pinkston said. "I'm from the country and I grew up with horses and to see horses in the inner city was an amazing thing for me."

"[I thought] What's going on? What are they doing?" Wright said.

There's no word on who the horse riders are or if they plan to continue these rides through the city. The mayor says they're investigating to see if the horses were stolen from arabber stalls.