Louisville Metro Council members looking into the controversial handling of an injured dog last year by Metro Animal Services said on Monday that the agency still hasn't turned over all the requested emails and information.
The inquiry, which has frustrated council members, revolves around a pit bull named Sadie that was turned over to Louisville Metro Animal Services with a front leg that required amputation.
Heather Adkins, an employee at LMAS at the time, fostered the dog for months and independently raised funds for the procedure, according to a report the ad hoc council committee issued last year. Adkins tried for months to coordinate the surgery for Sadie, but the dog was euthanized and Adkins was reprimanded.
The Metro Council report said Adkins’ superiors at LMAS mishandled the situation that led to Sadie’s death. But two LMAS administrators, Margaret Brosko and Donald Robinson, had not been questioned by the council until Monday because of a concurrent investigation by the Louisville Metro Police Department’s Public Integrity Unit.
That criminal investigation resulted in no charges.
Brosko, who was the senior manager at LMAS at the time, told council members that LMAS did all they could with the information they had at the time.
Councilman Kelly Downard, however, countered that emails and information obtained by a third party show a different story.
“There were some mistakes made and we are taking steps to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” said Downard, R-16. “We wouldn’t have to spend a year doing this, but we tugged piece by piece to get information.”
Brosko characterized what happened as an “unfortunate situation” but insisted metro officials were working to accommodate the council’s own investigation into the matter.
“If you don’t think I am not frustrated having to sit through here for a year of the same thing,” Brosko said. “I wish we could have had this conversation on day one instead of having it go on this long.”
But the root of what happened or who ordered Sadie be euthanized remains unclear.
Councilman Kevin Kramer, R-11, grilled both Brosko and Robinson about whether LMAS ordered Sadie to be euthanized or undergo an amputation—as well as why Sadie suffered for a year before anything happened. The council report shows several instances in which Sadie had bitten through a protective cone and was self-mutilating by chewing up the leg that needed to be removed.
Robinson, who was the system director of operations at LMAS at the time, reprimanded Adkins when news broke out about Sadie’s death.
Even during this latest meeting with council members, he maintained that Adkins acted improperly.
“I was addressing a policy that was not followed,” Robinson said.
He said he “found out about the Sadie situation on Facebook the following day,” when he should have been notified earlier.
Council members balked at Robinson’s claim that Adkins did not follow LMAS policy. Downard said Adkins had sent out several emails and continuously notified her superiors about what has happening with Sadie.
“I’m amazed at some of the things that happened, but I want to say that I am also confused about what is going on,” Downard said. “I am very confused and very disappointed.”
Kramer said the inquiry has been challenging.
“I feel better, we’ve moved some, but I don’t think we are quite finished yet,” he told WFPL following the meeting.
“I am still waiting to see if we are going to get some of the final information that we requested that they may choose not to give us.”
Council members expect to hold another meeting before releasing their own report about what led to Sadie’s death.
Both Brosko and Robinson still work for metro government. Brosko is part of the communications staff in Mayor Greg Fischer’s office and Robinson is a system director for Develop Louisville.