Category Archives: Animals

In accordance with the law —Susan Leavens

Received today on When officials act like they are hiding something, they usually are. -jsq
“You won’t receive an open-records request if you answer questions honestly and in accordance with the law.” What an honest statement; perhaps some of this too.
GEORGIA CONSTITUTION
ARTICLE IX. COUNTIES AND MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS
SECTION II. HOME RULE FOR COUNTIES AND MUNICIPALITIES
(c) The power granted to counties in subparagraphs (a) and (b) above shall not be construed to extend to the following matters or any other matters which the General Assembly by general law has preempted or may hereafter preempt, but such matters shall be the subject of general law or the subject of local acts of the General Assembly to the extent that the enactment of such local acts is otherwise permitted under this Constitution:

(1) Action affecting any elective county office, the salaries thereof, or the personnel thereof, except the personnel subject to the jurisdiction of the county governing authority.

(2) Action affecting the composition, form, procedure for election or appointment, compensation, and expenses and allowances in the nature of compensation of the county governing authority.

(3) Action defining any criminal offense or providing for criminal punishment.

When officials act like they are hiding something, they usually are. —VDT

Go VDT! There are so many potential applications of today’s editorial in the Valdosta Daily Times, from animals, to prisons, to zoning code enforcement, to biomass:
But there are still those who don’t understand the purpose of a newspaper, and it’s clearly not to be a marketing tool for the community. In addition to reporting the news of the day, a newspaper’s job as a member of the “fourth estate,” so deemed by Thomas Jefferson, is to hold public officials accountable for their actions.

“When officials act like they are hiding something, they usually are.”
To The Times and its editorial board, it’s far worse for the community’s image to have public officials knowingly lie, illegally withhold public documents and try to bully those who are only after the truth.

When officials act like they are hiding something, they usually are. You can’t be accused of lying if you don’t lie. You won’t receive an open-records request if you answer questions honestly and in accordance with the law.

Companies looking to settle in a community are understanding when it comes to crime, as it happens everywhere. But far more interesting to them is the honesty and integrity of the community’s officials.

If an entity will lie and withhold information from the local news media and the citizens, why would industry expect any different?

There was an old game show called Truth or Consequences. Too often, some entities ignore the truth and are surprised by the consequences. Sadly, the public too often feels the consequences when it could use a little truth.

Now let’s see them apply the same standard to CUEE, or can the VDT not see through the bogus claims of an organization it supports?

-jsq

There is no question how the Law reads —Susan Leavens

Received Monday as a response to Euthanization Violations at the Lowndes County Animal Shelter. -jsq
There is no question how the Law reads; the only question is who indicated there no wrong doing? And they were questioning my character? I question those people who indicated I had a bios opinion to read the laws of Georgia. I am aware you can mirror laws and even add to them in county ordinances but you cannot take away from the law in anyway.

From the United States Department of Agriculture Web Site on Euthanasia

http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usda/usdahome?navid=AZ_INDEX

Under Guidelines for Euthanasia

When performing euthanasia in a shelter

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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: Continue reading →

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

Where is law enforcement? —Jane Osborn

Received 27 July on Shouldn’t the people running the facilities … be held accountable? -jsq
And I continue to ask, since my email of a couple of months ago to the Sheriff never received an answer, where is law enforcement when there clearly are illegal acts of animal cruelty occurring here? We made a big deal (appropriately) several years ago about a dog that was intentionally set on fire by local people, but these violations are all the more difficult to understand since they appear to be happening at the hands of the very people sworn to protect our county’s animals.

-Jane Osborn

Tres the special needs cat —Melissa K. Alderman

Received 26 July 2011. -jsq
This is Tres a special needs cat pictured above. Tres was abandoned and left to fend for herself. She has been living under the office of a local law firm where the employees have been feeding her and taking care of her. Because of her disability we were afraid that Tres would not be able to take care of herself or fend off other animals if left outside. It’s apparent that Tres once belonged to someone, she is a very sweet and affectionate cat once she gets to know you. It’s very sad to know that someone abandoned this sweet cat and left her outside to take care of herself with her disability.

Tres has been examined by a vet and the vet says

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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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These are crimes —Susan Leavens

Received 28 June 2011. -jsq
John,

I am so sorry you had to see these offenses, it should have been investigated/viewed by the Sheriffs Dept. or GBI, these are crimes not violations like the GDA says!

I will not give up on this; crimes should be punished as such. I have written many citiznes of lowndes county citations and they have been charged with these crimes by a court of law. No one is above the law including Linda Patelski, but the GDA recognizes these crimes as violations, not crimes or they would have been handled as such. No person should be covered under the umbrella of GDA. After statements have been lost by them (GDA) and then resubmitted it just seems like these crimes are no more important then losing a receipt for gas.

I find that Joe Prichard involving my character in this matter irrelevant and my convictions in court cases involving animal cruelty inhumane treatment and other ordinance violations and state laws speak of my character, over 400 cases brought before magistrate court, municipal court and state court out weigh his personal opinion(s) and one case lose in five years of employment as animal control officer for Lowndes County and I was told to write that citation by my director Linda Patelski for nuisance dog. I have not discredited any employee who works for Lowndes County in these matters… I have told the truth and have documentation to back what I say.

Because I said I have no respect for Joe Prichard in my statement

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