Date: Thu, 17 Jul 2008 18:23:23 -0700
To: Marcia Mayeda
Subject: A3442041 on exposed come-along pole
Marcia:
There’s a dog on the adoptable section of your Department’s website on an exposed come-along pole. I guess it’s too much to ask your staff to comply with a directive issued by multiple members of upper management. Then again this is a Department that keeps animal abusers employed like Melvin Sparks who allegedly injects pigeons with Fatal Plus and then releases them to see how far they can fly before dropping to the ground, drowns squirrels, and injects animals with air and cleaning solution, or Felix Reyes who abused a Rottweiler with a broken back (http://lacdacc.blogspot.com/2008/07/felix-reyes-animal-abuse-report.html). Why should your employees follow policy and procedure and the law? You don’t. You obstructed justice by issuing orders to destroy emails while under investigation by the Federal Drug Enforcement Agency. What kind of an example is that for your employees?
http://animalcare.lacounty.gov/AdoptDetails.asp?AnimalID=A3442041
Thursday, July 17, 2008
A3442041 on exposed come-along pole
Monday, July 14, 2008
Marcia Mayeda conspired to obstruct justice
Date: Mon, 14 Jul 2008 19:25:03 -0700
To: Don Knabe, Gloria Molina, Michael Antonovich, Yvonne Burke, Zev Yaroslavsky
Subject: Marcia Mayeda conspired to obstruct justice
Attachment: Obstruction of justice email.pdf
Board of Supervisors:
The below email which I’ve also attached to this email was sent by Marcia Mayeda to some of her staff instructing them to obstruct justice by not leaving a “paper trail” by deleting emails while under investigation by the Federal Drug Enforcement Agency regarding the Department’s non-compliance with state and federal euthanasia record keeping requirements and for not obtaining proper licenses.
US Code Title 18 § 1519 states:
§ 1519. Destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in Federal investigations and bankruptcy
Whoever knowingly alters, destroys, mutilates, conceals, covers up, falsifies, or makes a false entry in any record, document, or tangible object with the intent to impede, obstruct, or influence the investigation or proper administration of any matter within the jurisdiction of any department or agency of the United States or any case filed under title 11, or in relation to or contemplation of any such matter or case, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both.
Board of Supervisor Use of Electronic Mail (e-mail) by County Employees Policy 6.104 states:
E-mail retention must comply with legal requirements
Marcia Mayeda not only violated Board of Supervisor Policy and Procedure, but she also violated federal law. You have continued to defend Marcia Mayeda through her lies over and over again and you can no longer continue to do so. If you do not fire her over this and seek criminal charges against her, you are just as guilty and liable as she is.
When I met with William Fujioka on 6/27/2008, I showed him this email. This was witnessed by Chief Deputy Sharon Harper, Deputy CEO Lari Sheehan, and three members of the public. As Mr. Fujioka was reading the email, he was asked by Sharon Harper if it really was an obstruction of justice email and he replied, “Yes” with a worried look on his face. This appeared to be the first time Mr. Fujioka was made aware of this email. That was two weeks ago. If he has hid this email from you or not initiated any disciplinary action against Marcia Mayeda, he is just as guilty and liable as she is.
I’m blasting this email far and wide so the entire world can see how corrupt the Department of Animal Care and Control is and how the County of Los Angeles continues to keep employed and waste tax payers money on employees who continually and routinely break the law.
From: Marcia Mayeda
Sent: Thursday, October 04, 2007 10:20 AM
To: Josie Zabala; Michelle Roache; Derek Brown; David Nelson
Cc: Marcia Mayeda
Subject: RE: DEA Crisis
Josie, thanks for your comments - i agree that everyone did an outstanding job on this matter! However, we do not need a paper trail on this. Everyone, please delete these emails from your computers and empty the trash files.
Thanks!
----Original Message----
From: "Josie Zabala"
To: "Michelle Roache"
Cc: "Marcia Mayeda"
Sent: 10/4/2007 9:51 AM
Subject: DEA Crisis
Thank you for coming to the rescue.
Michelle, thanks for those contacts and we need to thank them some way. Please let me know.
Derek, thanks for calling the inspector. With your help, we can put this department in full compliance no matter how difficult it will be. I believe we will also educate the inspectors on shelter compliance.
David, thanks for staying calm and being the professional you are. Relaying my answers and explaining those "whys" and "how come", I am sure was hard under the situation.
Cesar Romo
On Friday, April 21, 2006, a son discovered his mother having sex with Animal Control Officer Cesar Romo, an animal license canvaser, while on the job. Later that day the mom killed herself by hanging herself in her bathroom. You can listen to the recording of the son complaining about Cesar Romo below. Even though Cesar Romo was fired over this, the public has a right to know the type of people the Department hires.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Daniel Robledo animal abuse footage
This is sadly the attitude of many employees of the Department of Animal "Care" and Control. I personally witnessed one such employee at a recent Downey Animal Shelter protest dragging two small scared dogs across the parking lot on the hot asphalt while the dogs were rolling on the ground. She didn't look back and just kept dragging the dogs. This and what I've described below are just a few examples of why Los Angeles County animals need so much help and why Marcia Mayeda needs to be fired.
Below are photos and video footage of Daniel Robledo stepping on and kicking dogs at the Downey Animal Shelter. Daniel Robledo was fired for this. The Department is home to numerous animal abusers who still work for the Department like Melvin Sparks and Felix Reyes. Felix Reyes dragged a Rottweiler with a broken back across the grounds of the Baldwin Park Animal Shelter and this act of abuse was recorded on camera and witnessed by a family of four. Melvin Sparks allegedly injected animals with air and cleaning solution, drowned squirrels, and injected pigeons with Fatal Plus and then released them to see how far they could fly before dropping to the ground.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Felix Reyes animal abuse report
The below report, which can also be downloaded here, describes the abuse of a Rottweiler by Felix Reyes. Reyes dragged a Rottweiler with a broken back across the grounds of the Baldwin Park Animal Shelter. Reyes is still employed by the Department even though this abuse was captured on tape and witnessed by a family of four.
COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES
Department of Animal Care and Control
Baldwin Park Animal Shelter
4275 N. Elton Avenue
Baldwin Park, California 91706
Date: July 1, 2006
To: Lance Hunter
Animal Shelter Manager
From: Eileen Hill
Animal Control Officer IV
Subject: Animal Cruelty
Mr. Hunter on June 29, 2006 Christine Triviso Officer in Charge called me at 20:48 hours. She was very upset about an animal that ASA Felix Reyes impounded (A3541388). The animal was in cage B338 and was unable to walk. She had the dog taken to the San Gabriel Emergency pet hospital in El Monte.
ASA Peter Carrillo was in the kennel when ASA Felix Reyes came into building three dragging a large black Rottweiler or Labrador mix. ASA Carrillo assisted ASA Reyes lifting the dog into cage B338.
Officer Triviso was unable to locate ASA F. Reyes daily work report for the day. The other daily work reports for that day were key punched on June 30, 2006 by Ms. Ponce STC. I located the daily work report on July 1, 2006 in the squad room where daily work reports are required to be left at the end of each employees shift.
Activity number A06-051102 for a 905-S 905-I was dispatched to ASA Reyes at 12:37 hours. At 12:38 hours ASA Reyes arrived at 4249 Elton St. He asked Acting Sergeant Alvaro Gonzalez to assist him that the dog was not injured but an aggressive.
On July 1, 2006, I viewed our camera recordings for June 29, 2006 from the period of 17:10:00 through 17:14:44. What I saw I found to be very upsetting. ASA Reyes drug this poor animal from the truck wash area all of the way to building three. A family of four viewed this and stopped to watch from between buildings two and three.
Please view cameras:
B 5 Yard From 17:10:00 through 17:12:48
B CU From 17:11:00 through 17:12:01
B 5 From 17:12:48 through 17:14:01
B 3 Exit From 17:12:09 through 17:14:44
B 3 Entrance From 17:12:11 through 17:14:44
I have not recorded the images on to a CD.
The dog was brought back from the emergency pet clinic by Officer Anderson ACO I, on June 30, 2006. The dog was placed in cage B114.
E. F. Chavez D.V.M. The treating veterinarian wrote these findings. QAR; non-wt. baring Rt. Hind leg; edema @ tarsus; no wound possible Cox femoral dislocation.
Torb. 1.0 w. 1 Ace 0.2 a SQ VD of pelvis- RT Cox femoral dislocation
Mask w/iso intubate iso suspend from rt. Hind leg to relax emasculative. Treatment: Reduce luxation- post op x-ray taken staple laceration under RT arm adjacent to chest 750 g. polyflex sq 1c. Letophen sq.
Rx amox 500 BID rumadyl 75 mg BID both given
ASA Reyes entered the cage with the dog, he is only in there for about a minute but there is a lot of movement in that period. He then exits the cage and it appears that the dog is still on the other end of the catchall pole. ASA Reyes does not release the dog immediately but puts his foot on the catch all pole and inserts the cage card into the holder, then he makes some motion and releases the dog from the catchall pole.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Citizen watchdog group declares new County structure a failure
Citizens watchdog group gives bad marks to new Los Angeles County structure
Report says government takes longer to get less done since supervisors created a chief executive office.
By Garrett Therolf, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
July 3, 2008
No one's office in the Los Angeles County Hall of Administration has a sign saying, "The buck stops here." Power is scattered throughout the bureaucracy, and it's hard to credit any decision -- good or bad -- to one person.
Last year, the Board of Supervisors made an effort to change that by hiring the county's first chief executive. But according to a report to be released today by a citizens watchdog group, many of the office's intentions are unfulfilled.
County Chief Executive William T. Fujioka replaced a weaker county administrator, who also managed departments and reported to the five elected supervisors but lacked authority to hire and fire department heads and was not ultimately responsible for their success or failure.
However, a copy of the report released to The Times shows that so far:
* Decisions have actually become tougher to make, and power is more diffuse. Aides to the supervisors have not relinquished control over the day-to-day affairs of county departments, thus expanding the number of bosses rather than reducing them.
* Modest improvements in some county operations over the last year cannot be linked to the new structure. "Clearly, the major benefits have been the increased collaboration" between departments, according to the supervisors' Citizen's Economy Efficiency Commission. "The commission, however, could not judge whether this collaboration could have been accomplished under the old structure."
The commission recommended another status report of the new system in a year. Supervisors originally planned to ask voters to approve the empowered chief executive office this year, but they now say that will not happen until 2010 at the earliest.
"This improvement that we are trying to do does not just happen by edict," Fujioka said. "The county is the ultimate ocean freighter, and you know how long it takes to turn around an ocean freighter."
In the meantime, Fujioka and the supervisors said they are optimistic they can make the new structure work. For that to happen, the commission said, decisions would have to be streamlined.
The beefed-up chief executive staff has created a new layer of management that has often made it more difficult for staffers to swiftly bring important projects and crises to the desks of top decision makers, the report said.
And the county has no shortage of crises: A failing healthcare system has struggled to cover costs and deliver care appropriately, and the county has provided chronically substandard social services for the homeless, abused children and others.
The report described the Board of Supervisors and the staffs responsible for delivering those services as being filled with micromanagers. Little time is spent developing a broad vision to solve problems, the commission found.
"The new system," Supervisor Gloria Molina said in an interview, "was supposed to free the supervisors up to think about the big policy questions. That is not happening yet."
Instead, aides to the supervisors have joined aides to the chief executive in marathon meetings that focus on day-to-day operations.
"There are many more meetings with many more participants, and the volume of e-mail is reaching nearly unmanageable levels," the report said. "Paradoxically, there is a sense among [aides] and supervisors that they are now less informed than they were under the old structure."
Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, who championed the new structure and still supports it, has likened it at times to the Kremlin. Fujioka recently found it necessary to issue a memorandum, saying it was OK for department heads to communicate with aides to the supervisors, especially on "hot issues."
Yaroslavsky said, "We are going to work on it now so that six months from now, some of the issues raised in the report will be addressed."
Still, many county officials remain hopeful that the new structure will work.
garrett.therolf@latimes.com
