Amid sexual misconduct accusations, Wayne Pacelle recently stepped down from his post as CEO of the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). Now members of the U.S. equestrian community are pondering whether individuals in that industry are vulnerable to similar charges and what can be done to prevent them.

In January, the HSUS Board of Directors announced that a HSUS staffer had accused Pacelle of sexual harassment, and that the Board had hired an attorney to carry out an independent investigation. However, on Feb. 2, the Board announced that investigators had not uncovered evidence enough to fire Pacelle. But after three more similar accusations came to light, the HSUS Board said in a written statement that it accepted Pacelle’s resignation on the same day. The Board appointed Kitty Block, president of the Humane Society International, as acting president and CEO.

Pacelle’s resignation comes on the heels of the high-profile trial of physician Larry Nassar, DO, who was accused of sexually abusing more than 200 mostly young female gymnasts while he served as an osteopathic physician for the USA Gymnastics team. Nassar pleaded guilty to a total of 10 charges of first degree sexual abuse and was sentenced to serve up to 300 years in prison.

So are young equestrians equally vulnerable to similar exploitation from trainers and other equestrian community members? Veteran trainer Jill Girardi-Thomas believers that many are not