`Dreadhead Cowboy’ pleads guilty to animal cruelty charge

CHICAGO (AP) - A man known as the “Dreadhead Cowboy” has pleaded guilty to animal cruelty in connection with a rush-hour horseback ride he took along Chicago’s Dan Ryan Expressway in 2020.

Cook County court records show Adam Hollingsworth pleaded guilty Friday to aggravated animal cruelty and was sentenced to one year in prison.

Hollingsworth was arrested in September 2020 after disrupting expressway traffic while galloping his horse during evening rush hour to draw attention to gun violence against children.

Officials initially said the horse was severely injured during the eight-mile ride, but it was later reported to have significantly recovered.