Monday, May 2, 2011 – On Monday, May 2, 2011, Monroe SPCA arrived at the MCAC facility prepared to evaluate the four dogs at issue, Monroe, Reilly, Dusty, and Razzle, as ordered by the court. MCAC Director, Linda Benson, however, informed members of Monroe SPCA they would not be allowed to have access to the facility or the dogs. After repeatedly being reminded that the performance of these evaluations by Monroe SPCA was ordered by the court (in another round-about conversation), Director Benson stated, she did not care what the Judge said, Sheriff Crutchfield told her not to allow [Monroe SPCA] access until the Judge put it in writing. Director Benson, additionally stated, the order had better be explicit. True to form, when we requested a fecal sample from each dog at this time so as to begin medical testing and assessments for veterinary treatment (also ordered), Director Benson refused this too, stating, we (Monroe SPCA) could only obtain "poop" if it was specified in a court order. The conversation continued, round-about, in a repetition of same, until finally, Monroe SPCA left the facility.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011 – On Wednesday, May 4, 2011, The Buster Foundation Pit Bull Education and Rescue joined Monroe SPCA, becoming an Intervening Party in the case, County of Monroe v Pamela Cole. At this hearing in First District Court, the court ordered that the Intervening Parties, Monroe SPCA and The Buster Foundation, were permitted to have access to the dogs at the Monroe County Animal Control facility, beginning at 9:00 am on Thursday, May 5, 2011, for the purposes of evaluating the dogs and providing veterinary care. The court had already ordered access to the dogs on the record at the April 27, 2011, hearing, but Petitioner's employees had not complied with the order, instead turning Monroe SPCA members away when they attempted to access and evaluate the dogs at the facility on May 2, 2011. This new order again granted the Intervening Parties access and additionally stipulated that photographs and video recordings could be taken, but not released to the public or media.
Court Ordered Evaluations, May 5 and May 6, 2011 - Members of both organizations performed behavioral evaluations for several hours on both May 5 and May 6, 2011, at the Monroe County Animal Control facility. None of the four dogs demonstrated any aggressive behavior and all four were easy to approach, safe to work with, and of good temperament. In addition, the evaluators noted no evidence whatsoever that the dogs had either been fought or trained to fight, and none of the four had any scars or wounds consistent with fighting. Thursday, May 5, 2011 – At approximately 9:00 am, on Thursday, May 5, 2011, Monroe SPCA and the Buster Foundation arrived at the MCAC facility to carry out court ordered evaluations of the four dogs at issue, Monroe, Reilly, Dusty, and Razzle. Members of both organizations were informed at this time the dogs had been moved to an outdoor holding area and no member of either organization would be allowed access to the dogs' individual kennels in the building or the building itself.
Click on the following link to view assessments and summaries on May 5, 2011 by evaluator, Joanie Wazney:
Click on the following links to view dog tolerance evaluation findings and notations on May 5, 2011 by evaluator, Joanie Wazney (1):
Click on the following links to view dog tolerance evaluation findings and notations on May 5, 2011 by evaluator, Margaret Svoboda (2):
Click on the following links to view photo evidence of the dogs' overall body conditions on May 5, 2011:
Click on the following links to view video recordings of the dogs' being handled, examined, and evaluated on May 5, 2011:
Click on the following links to view educational documents; Matrix used by evaluators throughout evaluation process Traits and Characteristics: Pit Bull and Pit Bull Type Dogs Evaluation Matrix: Four Categories for Measuring Dog Tolerance Levels Friday, May 6, 2011 – At approximately 9:00 am, on Friday, May 6, 2011, Monroe SPCA and the Buster Foundation returned to the MCAC facility to continue court ordered evaluations of the four dogs at issue, Monroe, Reilly, Dusty, and Razzle. The dogs had again already been moved to an outdoor holding area and requests for access to the dogs' individual kennels in the building and the building itself were again denied, including a request to enter the building so as to weigh each dog. This would have occurred at a back of the building location, or put another way, inside the attached garage which could easily have been entered and exited by the evaluators and dogs from the outdoor common area and whose doors were located directly behind the outdoor holding pens.
Click on the following links to view evaluation findings and notations on May 6, 2011 by evaluator, Trina Stillwagon (3):
Click on the following links to view dog tolerance evaluation findings and notations on May 6, 2011 by evaluator, Trina Stillwagon (3):
Video recordings of the dogs' being handled, examined, and evaluated on May 6, 2011:
Click on the following link to view educational documents used by evaluators throughout evaluation process:
Monday, May 9, 2011 – On Monday, May 9, 2011, the District Court transferred care and custody of the four dogs, Monroe, Reilly, Dusty, and Razzle, to the Intervening Parties, Monroe SPCA and the Buster Foundation, because two of the four dogs had been severely injured while in the custody of the County of Monroe and County of Monroe employees failed to provide adequate care to treat those injuries. This May 9 Order that transferred custody also contained language that permitted the Intervening Parties to have access to the dogs "without expiration" and "without restriction." In short, the language of this order appears to have actually anticipated future actions. Since the Petitioners had already gone well-beyond reasonable efforts to prevent the Intervening Parties from having any access to the dogs at issue during the two-months prior to the May 9, 2011, custody transfer, this would then be a logical and legal fail-safe to ensure the humane care and treatment of the dogs no matter who had custody of them and this would have been the case if this order had actually been complied with by all parties involved or interested in the case, including particularly Petitioners' employees, MCAC personnel. The May 9 Order additionally stipulated that photographs and video recordings could be taken, but not released to the public or media, until the case was decided.
Click on the following links to view notations about each dog on May 9, 2011 by evaluator, Margaret Svoboda (2):
Click on the following link to read testimonial to the Court by Dearborn Animal Control Officer, Albert Ostrowski regarding the four dogs on May 9, 2011:
Click on the following links to view photo evidence of the dogs' injuries, extent of injuries, and overall body conditions on May 9, 2011:
Video recordings of the dogs' injuries and the dogs being handled, cleaned, treated, and cared for, while severely injured on May 9, 2011:
Video recording of MCAC personnel failing to divulge to the Intervening Parties that any dogs have been injured and/or need treatment when asked how they are doing upon arrival on Monday, May 9, 2011:
Video recording of MCAC personnel stating on Monday, May 9, (1) that Monroe was injured on Friday, May 6; (2) that MCAC personnel were aware of Monroe's injuries on Friday, May 6, and (3) that MCAC personnel were aware of how Monroe's injuries occurred on Friday, May 6:
Video recording of MCAC personnel stating again, they knew about the injuries regarding how and when, but also stating, having had nothing to do with the glazed coating of what appeared to be waste water and fecal matter covering entire head and body of Monroe and covering parts of body Reilly, i.e., areas of/around wounds:
Video recording of Intervening Parties attempting to get veterinary care and treatment for the injured dogs and again stating, we will assume all costs of veterinary care and treatment:
Video recording of Monroe waiting patiently for humane intervention, i.e., immediate veterinary care and treatment, while covered in hardened glazed substance, severely injured, and experiencing pain, while Monroe SPCA President and General Manager, Trina Stillwagon describes his injuries, the glazed-substance covering his entire body, and the details and extent of both, to the Buster Foundation's, Vice President and Director of Operations, Joanie Wazney:
Click on the following link to view the dogs in vehicles, waiting to leave Monroe County on May 9, 2011:
Click on the following link to view the dogs' intake photos upon arrival at Currey Kennels on May 9, 2011:
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
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