Ben Popken wrote for the Consumerist 15 July 2011, Small Arizona Town In Furor After 2nd Citizen Arrested For Speaking At Town Meeting:
What’s all this about? Continue readingThe town of Quartzsite, AZ, population 3,466, is in disarray after a video showing police hauling away a citizen for speaking at the town meeting podium went viral. The woman was saying that the town council had been violating open meeting laws.
It was the second citizen arrested at a Quartzsite town meeting in two weeks.
Dear Commissioners,Continue readingThere seems to be confusion as to how long citizens get to be heard. The policy says five minutes.
Yet in at least a couple of recent examples, citizens were cut off at less than that,
4 and a half minutes for me on 28 June 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJseMtJvJE8
4 minutes 39 seconds for Jessica Bryan Hughes on 24 May 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZxieSV6Yz8
You can see the times on the YouTube videos.
This timing confusion may be because
“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,” said Pritchard. “The standard operating procedures such as frequency of inspection of the animals and how often an animal will be reviewed or examined, along with the veterinarian care, have been revised to the general procedures set by guidelines of the Department of Agriculture and the animal control ordinance we adopted several years ago.”
“You take that policy, coupled with the updated standard operating procedures, added to the technical verification and I think that addresses the issues,” said Pritchard. “My purpose is to eliminate any problem or potential problem.”
Sounds to me like he’s saying the issues are resolved.
Remember,
“resolved” is the word Chairman Paulk used a few hours before.
If anyone is interested in watching the watchers, the animal control ordinance is online.
-jsq
David Rodock wrote 26 May 2011, Tour of the Lowndes County Animal Shelter
As promised at Tuesday’s Lowndes County Board of Commissioners meeting, the Lowndes County Animal Shelter (LCAS) allowed the public the opportunity Wednesday afternoon to get a behind-the-scenes look at the facility that has recently come under fire.
Employees, both past and present, have accused several shelter employees of inhumane treatment of animals, the mishandling of tranquilizers and illegal operating procedures.
At least two of the speakers at the commission earlier in the day
took the tour:
Jessica Bryan Hughes
and
Judy Havercamp.
One of the visitors summed it up: Continue reading