VIRGINIA BEACH
The head of the local SPCA contends that several criminal cases brought by a former animal control officer were dropped this week in retaliation for critical statements the officer had made to the City Council about the city's animal control bureau.
Sharon Adams, executive director of the Virginia Beach Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said the decisions to drop the cases tarnished the reputation of Rose Strickland, who worked for the city for about 13 years before resigning May 31. They also raised unfair questions about Strickland's credibility, Adams said, and threatened prosecution of her remaining cases.
Colin Stolle, chief deputy commonwealth's attorney, said the dismissals had nothing to do with Strickland's credibility.
He said the Police Department reviewed two of the cases in which warrants were issued and people were taken into custody.
A supervising animal control officer determined that the evidence on hand was not sufficient to continue prosecution. At the request of police, Stolle said, he examined the cases and made a similar assessment.
"This had nothing to do with Rose Strickland," Stolle said. "Our office would never get involved in a personnel matter."
Two of the hearings on Tuesday's docket at General District Court involved an allegation of animal cruelty. Another involved a woman facing charges of having a dangerous dog and being a public nuisance. All were dismissed.
"It was absolutely humiliating," Strickland said. "I have never seen what I saw in court. I know my job and was successful at my job. It is ridiculous that they would question any of my work."
Duane Bourne, (757) 222-5150, duane.bourne@pilotonline.com
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SPCA criticizes dismissal of cases
Since I am Sharon Adams, I can state unequivocally that my panties are just fine and I was present in Court on the aforementioned cases while I don't think any of the writers were. Their comments while predictable are uninformed. My focus and that of the Virginia Beach SPCA is animal welfare and of course we will speak out. Many feel that we should have been doing that over the past 16 years instead of trying to work within the system. As to the comments about two ACO's, that is just Jimmy's same old tirade. The facts are there were multiple complaints and witnesses to these cases and no effort was made to hear their testimony because, in my view, of the intervention of a Lt. in the Police Department. If these writers find retaliation and revenge a noble motive for not prosecuting cases on behalf of animals, I disagree. As always, the animals had no advocate in Court that day except the witnesses and Former Officer STrickland. That should be the point.
While that might be true,
I wrote about this on my blog but it bears pointing out that one of the former employees who "spoke out" was the very same animal control officer arrested and convicted for credit card fraud/theft and the other had THIRTEEN YEARS to say something to the media, PeTA or Sharon Adams and obviously chose not to do so. So here we have an officer all but telling someone, "We're going to take your animal for not taking proper care of it and we're going to charge you with a crime, while your animal is in our shelter, we're not going to take proper care of it, either." Does that make any sense? Why would then-Officer Strickland do that?
There are some folks in the humane enforcement community who simply use the welfare of the animals as justification for a sadistic streak where they rather enjoy using their authority to intimidate and stomp on those they feel are unable to fight back.
I also think that VBAC is MUCH BETTER off today than they were a year ago.
Its not about Sharon Adams
If you will read carefully, the complaints about VB Animal Control were brought about by two former animal control officers, one of whom was a thirteen year veteran, NOT Sharon Adams. Sharon Adams may have taken up their cause but she did not originate the complaints nor I doubt did she pressure these former employees to speak out.
It is about the animals, period. If AC employees have concerns about the care and treatment of them, then so should we and so should the Va Beach SPCA.
SPCA...
Do you know what is humiliating? Sharon Adams! Have you noticed all of the NEGATIVE articles written about the VB Animal control in the past few weeks/months? All of them involve Sharon Adams, showing AC in a negative light. Could this be some sort of personel vendetta against VB AC? Sure sounds like it to me.
I believe that that Mr. Stolle may know that law just a tad bit better than Ms. Adams, also would a judge dismiss a case for no good reason. I think most of them have better sense than that.
All I can say is that the SPCA has their panties in a bunch and for some reason have it out for VB AC. I would think that she would want to work together with them instead of against them.
Disgusting!