Tag Archives: Law

Euthanization Violations at the Lowndes County Animal Shelter —Judy Haverkamp @ LCC 26 July 2011



Lots of “don’t know the results of that” for drug testing,
administrative review board, etc.
Why don’t we know the results of those things?

Judy Haverkamp talked about what she’d discovered through open records requests.

“It seems like there’s been the same violations still occuring at the shelter
even up to this year,
and it doesn’t seem like anyone is
trying to make an effort to correct these problems!”

She repeatedly cited Georgia code sections that had been violated.

This pretty much sums it up:

“Why would you not do the proper thing to make this process as painless
as possible?”

Indeed, why not?

-jsq

Here’s

the video:

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Authorities are looking into employee complaints at a local animal shelter. —WCTV

Gabrielle Sarann wrote for WCTV 27 July 2011,

Deputies Review Employee Complaints at Animal Shelter



“Authorities are looking into employee complaints at a local animal shelter.”

And that’s all she wrote.
Really.
Follow the link.
There’s only that one sentence.

-jsq

I was told that these people were going to be prosecuted —Susan Leavens

Received 27 July on

Shouldn’t the people running the facilities … be held accountable? -jsq

Ms.
Jane Osborn,

I believe this was not meant to make the public’s attention. When I
was told to write statements I was told that these people were going to
be prosecuted. Several months went by and this remained silent, I waited
for the county board memebers to to do the right thing. What happened
was the infamous memo; which indicated we were not allowed to contact any
law enforcement agency about crimes or we would be held accountable for
discrediting a county employee. And it would be considered as an attack
against a county employee. Whoever if we contacted our county manager
it would be handled (I’m not quite sure how many times he needed to be
contacted about the issues at the shelter). As I clearly remember in the
first meeting he had at the shelter many years ago… Joe Prichard said
“I’ll fire everyone except Linda Patelski, Kay Jones and Michelle
Shultz” so I’m a little confused, the memo we got on September 22,
2010 said we wouldn’t be retaliated against if we followed the chain
of command (so does it mean if we report crimes to law enforcement we
will be retaliated against?) Clearly so, I assure you. The issues need
to be resolved.

-Susan Leavens

The lawyers are in charge at VLCIA —Roy Copeland

Thanks, Roy, for clarifying that:



“It’s forthcoming. I can’t tell you anything because quite frankly,
lawyers have their own schedules. I literally do not know specific
details because I’m not privy to that information as of this moment.”

Well, it’s good to know somebody’s in charge at the Authority.

My mistake in thinking
they just elected you Chairman.

Much more in David Rodock’s story in the VDT today,

Decision still looms for future of once proposed biomass plant site.

-jsq

VDT gets feisty with VLCIA over biomass

After noting that the Industrial Authority still hasn’t resolved

still hasn’t decided about Sterling Planet’s land purchase offer
even though

they had a meeting last week at which they could have,
with their new executive director and their new chairman,
the VDT editorialized today:

The IA promised a future of more open communication.



And yet Tuesday, the board’s attorney refused to answer any questions
regarding the potential sale of the land to the company, citing a caveat
in the Open Records Act that protects information involved in a current
legal issue. The Times issued an Open Records request Tuesday to obtain
the information requested or copies of the litigation documents, assuming
that since the attorney cited this exemption, there is an active lawsuit
over the land sale.

Good point!

The VDT acknowledged its own mistake and moved to correct it:

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Shouldn’t the people running the facilities … be held accountable? —Susan Leavens

Received yesterday. -jsq



From: SUSAN LEAVENS

To: gary.black@agr.georgia.gov

Sent: Tue, July 26, 2011 2:31:16 PM

Subject: Your attention would be grateful in regaurds to the Lowndes
County Animal Shelter

To the Honorable Agriculture Commissioner Mr. Gary
Black,

July 26, 2011

I would like to introduce myself, my name is Susan Leavens I currently
live in Quitman Georgia and I am an employee with Lowndes County,
formally as an animal control officer with Lowndes County Animal
Services. In June of last year I turned in three statements to Pat
Smith who is no longer with the animal protection division she is
currently running the Thomasville Animal Control. After speaking with
Ms. Pat an advising her of the situations that have occurred and are
currently occurring in the Lowndes County Shelter; she advised me to
have statements written by individuals that were willing and not afraid
of retaliation. Two current employees myself and Ronnie Ganas wrote
statements, one previously employee Amanda Jordan. The issues were
heard before Vinessa Sim-Green and several other animal protection
employees along with Ms Cora Potter. An administration hearing took
place an several “options” were offered to the Lowndes County
Manager Joe Prichard. These were things that would help the shelter run
more efficiently and perhaps come up to date with the Georgia Dept. of
Ag. standards; but the issues of animal cruelty, inhumane treatment and
practicing veterinarian medicine (surgery by castration of a 2 young
adult pot belly pigs). My concern is that the director was never
charged in any criminal court of law for her actions regarding the
animals at the shelter.

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“the qualified voters voting thereon in each separate school system proposed to be consolidated” —GA Constitution



Justia > US Law > Georgia Law > Georgia Constitution > Art. VIII
EDUCATION




SECTION V.

LOCAL SCHOOL SYSTEMS

Paragraph I. School systems continued; consolidation of school
systems authorized; new independent school systems prohibited.
Authority is granted to county and area boards of education to establish
and maintain public schools within their limits. Existing county and
independent school systems shall be continued, except that the General
Assembly may provide by law for the consolidation of two or more county
school systems, independent school systems, portions thereof, or any
combination thereof into a single county or area school system under
the control and management of a county or area board of education,
under such terms and conditions as the General Assembly may prescribe;
but no such consolidation shall become effective until approved by a
majority of the qualified voters voting thereon in each separate school
system proposed to be consolidated. No independent school system shall
hereafter be established.

There are problems at the animal shelter. They have not been resolved.

I think it’s time to ask: what did they know, and when did they know it?

Let’s construct a timeline:

  • 2011-05-20 euthanasia violation
  • 2011-05-20 statement from Heather Terry
  • 2011-05-23 County Manager Joe Pritchard

    tells the Commission and the public    :



    “We were not able to substantiate … accusations other than that … castration of pig.”

    That was even though

    WCTV already reported there had been several
    euthanasia violations last year.

    Pritchard also said they (the county in its previous investigation,
    presumably the one of 2010    )
    examined the character of those testifying for
    the complaints and he said they found biases.

  • 2011-05-24 County Commission Chairman Ashley Paulk

    tells the Commission and the public:



    “Whatever problems there are, they’re going to be resolved.”

  • 2011-05-24 The VDT quotes County Manager Joe Pritchard

    as saying    :



    “It’s no longer a case of an individual making a claim, as it will be evident by the physical evidence provided by the security cameras.”

    and:

    “You take that policy, coupled with the updated standard operating
    procedures, added to the technical verification and I think that
    addresses the issues. My purpose is to eliminate any problem or potential
    problem.”

  • 2011-05-31 statement by Director Linda Patelski saying two people fired for euthanasia violation of 20 May 2011

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Maybe we citizens need to hear the rest of the story —Barbara Stratton

Received today on
Ashley Paulk is a big man again:

Ref comments by outof control – This is definitely confusing. I don’t see anything in the controversy about contracts being put out to bid. Isn’t the fact an electrical company owned by one of the board members was contracted to do work on a government project illegal conflict of interest? It appears to me that someone needs to come in & educate all the government entities (elected & appointed)& the public in Lowndes Co on what conflict of interest means.

I have seen several incidents in government meetings where an elected or appointed individual excused himself from voting because of an admitted COI. How does that excuse the COI when COI also includes impaired objectivity, unequal access to information, etc. Basically if there is any connection between a government elected or appointed official & a private company contractual relationships of any kind come under COI & are not supposed to be allowed even if a bid process takes place.

That is another reason why citizens should not allow public/private partnerships. Normal bidding procedures are ignored

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Somebody has gotten fired at the animal shelter

Improper use of drugs for euthanizing animals is apparently
enough to get someone fired from the animal shelter,
at least if there is a parade of witnesses and paperwork,
but only after someone files a complaint with GA Dept. of Ag.

On 16 June 2011 Susan Leavens got
a letter from Shirley King, with attached

PDF, containing:

  • complaint from Susan Leavens (unknown date):

    “Employee working with Lowndes County Animal Services euthanizing animals wihtout certification.”

  • 2011-06-03 PDF notice of violation from Ga. Dept. Ag. to Lowndes Co. Animal Services
  • a long handwritten statement by Pat Smith, also annotated:

    “Copy of report received by [signed] Joe Pritchard 6-3-11”

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