Records for dog #269523 at Memphis Animal Services are incomplete. Curiously missing is the e-mail exchange between Ms. Brenda Fortney, who was interested in rescuing the healthy, vaccinated dog, and pound director James Rogers. On Friday August 8, 2014, Ms. Fortney e-mailed MAS to express an interest in the dog and director James Rogers told her he would keep the dog alive until the pound closed that afternoon. Here is his reply in full. Note that several MAS staff members are copied on the response:
From: James.Rogers@memphistn.gov
To: bfortney; tracy.dunlap@memphistn.gov; DeKeishia.Tunstall@memphistn.gov; Glenn.Andrews@memphistn.gov; James.Edgeston@memphistn.gov; Rebecca.Coleman@memphistn.gov; Shanna.Wall@memphistn.gov
Subject: RE: Interested in dog A269523
Date: Fri, 8 Aug 2014 12:01:01 +0000Good Morning Ms. Fortney,
This pets time has expired. You have until close of business today to adopt. Please inform me of your intentions upon receipt of this message.
Thank you
James M. Rogers
Administrator, MAS
But when a second rescuer contacted James Rogers later that morning, she was advised the dog had already been killed. Oops. An explanation was requested, multiple times, and the director finally provided one. It too is notably absent from this dog’s official records provided by the city of Memphis. Here is a copy sent to me by a shelter pet advocate:
From: <James.Rogers@memphistn.gov>
Date: 11 August 2014 08:15:38 am GMT-5
To: alysemasserano, jennwestrich, bfortney
Cc: <tracy.dunlap@memphistn.gov>, <Glenn.Andrews@memphistn.gov>, <DeKeishia.Tunstall@memphistn.gov>, <LaSonya.Hall@memphistn.gov>
Subject: RE: A269583Good morning Masserano,
My apologies for pet #269523 being humanely euthanized in error on Friday. I responded to Ms. Brenda Fortney at 7:01 Friday morning informing her that that she had until close of business on Friday to adopt the pet. I proceeded to remove the pet from the euthanasia list in our system at the time that I replied to her email at 7:01 a.m. This action should have been sufficient, however we have discovered through our investigation of this incident that it is not.
The pet was euthanized at 9:37 Friday morning. Reason being, pet ID # 259523 kennel card was not removed from the stack of kennel cards prepared for euthanasia the previous day. A fatal error. The pet’s kennel card remained in the stack of kennel cards for pets to be euthanized on Friday morning. The assigned staff proceeded to make the euthanasia list the “morning of” from the stack of kennel cards pulled the previous day. The pet was placed back on the euthanasia list from the kennel cards and subsequently euthanized.
We have a policy in place that the euthanasia list will not be completed until the “day of”. We followed that rule. The euthanasia list was made the “morning of” the euthanasia session. However, we must now include not pulling the kennel cards until the “day of” as well. By all accounts the death of one animal in error is unacceptable and MAS is diligently seeking to be error free. Again, please accept our apologies.
James M. Rogers
Administrator, MAS
*splashes cold water on face*
What the frell?
Does anyone on the planet earth understand the point of drafting a kill list the “day of” killing based upon information pooled from the previous day?
“We followed that rule.”
*slow clap*
By all means, step right up and grab yourself a prize from the Stupid Bin for following your own nonsensical rule that you made up because you can’t stop killing pets people want to adopt.
Despite all the staffers copied on the e-mail acknowledging the poor dog would be given an additional day to live, he was killed anyway. Not because the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing at MAS. That would be too innocent. It’s because the left hand at MAS is always killing animals while the right hand is up someone’s ass trying to find a brain.
Oh and it’s not “euthanasia” nor is it “humane” when you kill healthy pets. If you can’t own it, maybe you shouldn’t be doing it.
How many more, Memphis?
SOB
Sent from my iPhone
>
ROGERS NEEDS TO gooooooooooooooo!
A fatal error? No shit.
“It’s because the left hand at MAS is always killing animals while the right hand is up someone’s ass trying to find a brain.”
This would be funny if it weren’t so very, very true.
I guess when you kill high-volume conveyer belt-style, it’s REALLY hard to interrupt the system. And make no mistake, MAS is primarily set up to destroy pets as fast as possible (unless they can have a little fun with it on the side, but you know, that’s totally illegal and we don’t do that anymore, right? Right?).
Hey, I’ve got an idea – how about we work on trying to get animals out alive? How about we euthanize the very ill and the very aggressive and do our level damnedest to save all the others? Oh, and community education along with access to low cost s/n? And reaching out to rescue groups and encouraging them to come in and take pictures and evaluate animals? No? Sounds like too much work? Killing is way easier? I see.
FIRE THEM ALL.
Oh, and funny how they “forgot” to include the email exchanges. How much do you want to bet that shit like this is happening every single day there?
I’d bet you, but we’d both be betting on the same thing . . .
These emails should all be part of the dog’s public record. They aren’t because either someone was too lazy to enter them or was trying to cover up his tracks.
“A fatal error” Wait. Time out. Does this pinhead ever proof read his emails?
Memphis….FAIL
Sad to say, my first thought was, “Of course they did”! The worst thing is that this little dog had someone who wanted him and did all the right things. The also-worst thing is the assinine exchanges from Rogers. I agree with everything that’s been said so far. Memphis Pets Alive must be a group of saints to see this go on day in and day out and still stay positive and hopeful.
I’m not a mean person (usually) but I hope that Rogers and Wharton have a terrible debilitating accident on the golf course so they both have to be replaced!
RIP little black and white boy
RIP all the others who die there every single day
SHUT THE DAMN PLACE DOWN
Amen.
The phrase “humanely euthanized in error” is an oxymoron. Oops killings are not humane. Letting the rescue take the dog and find him a home would have been the humane thing to do.
WHEN WILL GET MEMPHIS SHELTER CLOSED OR HIRE NEW STAFF! tHESE PEOPLE ARE INEPT!
Sad to say, my first thought was, “Of course they did”! The worst thing is that this little dog had someone who wanted him and did all the right things. The also-worst thing is the asinine exchanges from Rogers. RIP Sweetie. You sure were let down by people who SHOULD want you to find a new loving home.
If I remember correctly Wharton hired Rogers because of his organization skills. Judging from Rogers history at MAS he hasn’t done that to any acceptable level either! He needs to go into retirement permanently. Rogers does not belong at MAS for any reason.
This latest killing of a dog who was spoken for will be repeated over and over again. MAS can not be trusted in any capacity whatsoever. Please get this place closed down.
Utterly heartbreaking. How can these people sleep at night with those trusting little faces in their minds’ eyes as they commit cold-blooded murder?
And, yes, we have to correct the wrongful use of the word “euthanasia” every time we hear it.
They can sleep because they don’t look at these animals as living beings. Just another number. And , Oh, yeah… it’s not THEIR fault. If only the public were more responsible… riiiight…
He was only 2. And he was wanted.
Another error? How many “errors” is this man going to be able to make sadly his error is murdering dogs who had a rescue/adopter who wanted to give them a home. The purpose of the shelter should be to find the animals a loving home not killing them as fast as you can. James Rogers needs to go there needs to be someone with animal shelter experience & with compassion for animals running the Shelter James Rogers has neither.
How horribly sad and stupid!! It is not the first not, sadly, will it be the last time this BS occurs. I have been active in rescue work for years and gone up (and won) against some of the “highest politicos” to stop this.. but it takes everyone with a heart pulling together and working to stop this. I heard about this from a wonderful website to which I belong ad LisaBull.
IF the people working there were truly there to help and save animals things like this would NEVER happen…they just don’t care..what’s another dead dog to them? when they kill so many animals day after day…they just DONT care!!
What is the tally on the oops kills in Memphis? Seems to have been a lot of them recently. With all that is wrong there and with all the evidence the people there should be trying to make it more public and get the community to publicly making it uncomfortable for mayor on down. I write to them but I think I am taken as another one of those dumb Yankees .
They have me on “delete” as well. They simply do not care that the world sees what’s going on and they will continue to kill and abuse/neglect pets. I don’t know what it will take for this to stop, I really don’t. Memphis Pets Alive is doing a wonderful job, especially considering the blockades Memphis Animal Slaughter puts in their way. So, maybe giving MPA all the support we can will change the balance. I fear that it will take Wharton being voted out and an entire change in administration to begin to make a difference. Hopefully he will not be re-elected the next time he runs. The rest of the city can’t be much better . . . and I know there are a lot of good people there. The hardest thing for me to wrap my mind around is St Judes and MAS in the same city.
We need to end this killing facility! They continue to act stupid and ignore us! Cam Memphis PETS ALIVE organize more people to join them and demand immediate action!
Is it not illegal to alter a pet’s records? What is the point of us FOIA’ing records if they are incorrect, incomplete, and/or changed to cover someone’s ass? Is this something we can sue the city over? Anyone that has requested FOIAs lately can tell you they are getting slower and slower to respond. Are they making sure the records are “scrubbed” before going out? I’m pretty sure we should be able to take legal action over this.
I’m not an attorney but I agree that the numerous FOIA inconsistencies seems like a good case to take to court. If you can find anyone in Memphis willing to take it.
Memphis is finally getting a new director!