Now more than ever, you are needed to donate your old blankets, towels, and sheets to your local animal shelter. With financial cut-backs, repairs on shelters are often put off, so if it's drafty, the animals suffer. I know my shelter uses rags to stuff under doors. No kidding! Empty out those closets... this is your chance to get rid of stuff and do something useful!


Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Investigation of Chesterfield South Carolina Animal Shelter Continues

Here's another news report.



Seems there are some minor discrepancies with past reports but here's what I think based on watching the
video:
  • Chesterfield County left just $14,000 after salaries and benefits to care for dogs at the local shelter.
  • They intake 70-90 dogs a month.
  • To save money, staff at the Sheriff's Office, who are charged with running the shelter, euthanized the dogs using firearms, which may not be a crime in South Carolina. It is unclear whether the Sheriff, who's information is listed in the previous post, knew ahead of time about this method being used. His office is investigating itself.
  • They did not anticipate the outrage that would follow such an act.
  • Now the State Attorney General's Office and the State Law Enforcement Division (which may ultimately find that no law was broken) are investigating.
What to do?

Keep pressure up. The news station above made their question of the day ask what should happen to the staff that shot the dogs? Local government offices are being inundated with calls. Here are some more numbers to call, courtesy of Pets Alive Blog (no pun intended).

The town is run by the town council though, so be SURE to cc them as well: cftmclerk@shtc.net and ccgov@shtc.net.
Council members: http://www.chesterfieldcountysc.com/secondary.aspx?pageID=129
Contact the Governor:

Governor Nicky Haley
grassroots@nikkihaley.com

Contact the Attorney General’s office and demand that the sheriff’s own office not be able to investigate themselves and that a higher authority do so.

The Honorable Alan Wilson
P.O. Box 11549
Columbia, S.C. 29211
803-734-3970
http://www.scattorneygeneral.org/ag/contact.html

The Sheriff, in case you want to voice your concern over the unprofessional response to an overpopulation problem.
Phone: 843-623-2101
Fax: 843-623-3534
Email: admin@chesterfieldsheriff.org
Animal Control:
Brian Burch – Supervisor
Joe Campbell – Animal Control Officer
467 Goodale Road
Chesterfield SC 29709
Phone: 843-623-3585
Fax: 843-623-9223

Senator Lindsey Grahm
http://lgraham.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.LandingPage

Senator Jim DeMint
Phone: 843-727-4525
Fax: 843-793-6839

Rep. Mick Mulvaney
803-327-1114
FAX: 803-327-4330
Email Address: https://mulvaney.house.gov/Contact/default.aspx
WWW Homepage: http://mulvaney.house.gov/
Twitter: @RepMickMulvaney
Betty Lynn Watson

Municipal Clerk
Town of Chesterfield
843-623-9104
cftmclerk@shtc.net
http://www.chesterfield-sc.com/
And, don't forget the local news stations:

Chesterfield County Newspaper:
Phone: Main Office – (843) 537-5261
Fax: (843) 537-4518
email- cherawnews@thecherawchronicle.com

WRIC- local news network
804-330-8000


What may come out of this, like many tragedies that need something bad to happen to galvanize people, is that legislators and local citizens will put their heads together to find funding or raise it, deal with the problem of poor spay/neuter programs- which lead to overpopulation, cracking down on puppymills- which breed misery, and encouraging adoption- which is the best answer possible. Here are the local rescues in the area, who likely have been screaming about these things for some time, and who have stepped up in the wake of this tragedy which did not have to happen.

In the meantime, please give a few calls today to encourage South Carolina to act like it lives in the 21st Century.

Is that bitchy?


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