Radio Time Wednesday Dec. 10

Thanks to various emails from others, and an interested producer, it looks like I will be on talk radio News 95.7 tomorrow afternoon, the Tom Young Show. I will have a chance to put the facts out there. I should be on air as a guest after 1:35 PM (Atlantic Time) After I go off air, they will take calls for a while. Maybe if you have time you can try to call in, or somebody you know.

Afternoon News with Tom Young
TomP.Young@atlanticradio.rogers.com
Toll Free: 1-866-411-0889

You can listen online here.

Wish me luck!

Because all I want for Christmas is my life back, and my life is with Brindi, I really hope this helps.

from Kijiji

This is a message similar to others I have received - it arrived last week:

Hello, this is so unreal that they won't give you the chance to do your part!! Go to your local MLA"S office and see if they can help you out, I had to do the same thing a few years ago, my dog got loose and was running and playing just as your dog did, then animal services came and took her for no reason... I call my MLA's office and within 3 days my dog was returned and, now we have a fence and she can run in the yard all she wants to.. Also try posting a add on facebook to help save your dog... have faith in your MLA and hopfuly things will work for you. Please let me know what happens in this case.. my e-mail address is ___@hotmail.com and my first name is L.. Thanks for taking the time out to read my message to you.

Well, L, as I wrote you back, did that. Would that it worked out the way it did for you.
I first had to call a lawyer and maybe by the time I called the MLA it was too late, who knows? I was told that my MLA was very powerful though.

Here is one I just discovered in my yahoo email inbox - I don't check it very often, and this is dated Nov. 9:

Hi Francesca,

Please don't give up. You have to be strong and fight for your dog. Have you contacted the local newspaper ? I supported a huge campaign here to help free a German Shepherd that was in a similar situation like your dog. I put my life on hold for this for 6 months. We won the dog back. We rallied in front of the courthouse and in town for weeks and months... holding huge signs. You need to get people's attention - I don't know what you have done so far.. the website looks great and is informative - please Francesca don't give up - let me know if I can help compose something, I have written many articles on the other dog's behalf and published them online. Maybe you can use some of those articles and just change them around to Brindi's situation. Let me know.

Hang in there,

Monika Courtney, Evergreen, CO.


Yes Monika, I have certainly contacted the local papers and local everything. If you page back in the blog you will see links as well.
I would like to be able to list the blog posts by title and date but I can only find a way to do it with the date, not the title too. If anybody knows how to have both, please tell me!


And this is a story about a woman in Saskatchewan who lost several dogs to the dogcatchers. She sued for pain and suffering. By US standards the amount she won is laughable; not even close to legal costs. But at least she won.
I don't want to lose my dog in the first place. I've already spent far more than she got for her pain and suffering.

Waiting more

Well there is no news, and in this case, it's not good news.

Seems there is another holdup on Silvia Jay's assessment. She is still waiting for the go-ahead. Something to do with the court order still. I guess it had to get colder before she could go. Friday was fine; today we have snow and a subterranean temperature.

As soon as I hear anything I will post it.

Meanwhile... Wednesday night is the comedy benefit at Bourbon Street West in Montreal, and Saturday there may even be some news from Calgary, Alberta.

Further to that

to explain... because our court date was Dec. 16 and we hadn't received anything much in response, I had hoped Brindi would be home by Christmas. Our by-law case is good, but the city managed to do things to delay the case being heard - including submitting erroneous information and stalling on turning over requested info. They are very likely tripling my legal expenses because my lawyer had to spend most of last week dealing with the last-minute stuff. And now I have to wait until January 5 at the earliest, barring any further unspeakables that the city tosses at us to delay things more or drag them in other directions.

I wonder how many people are going to be working at the shelter over the holidays, how much attention Brindi and the other animals there will get during all the celebrations. How is that place heated, anyway?

I just cannot get it out of my mind that the very same people I see there, surrounding me all of a sudden in the lobby, who are taking care of Brindi and talking about her to everybody and saying how well they are taking care of her, etc. etc., are the very same people who will just as readily put her to sleep if I wind up losing the case and running out of money. The same people who tell me that they are upset by my coming by and talking about the case. No wonder they're upset - they should be. But I'm more upset than a thousand of them put together.

And meanwhile, it sure seems to me the city of Halifax, maybe the province too, doesn't really give a damn about immigrants (or single women). At least they are certainly sending a clear message to that effect. (Too bad because pets keep medical costs down.) And people on the global petitions are taking it seriously; more than a few have said they are canceling vacations here. At the same time, emigrants - people who've left the Maritimes - are among the strongest supporters I have in the rest of Canada. 

So no Brindi until - when, 2009? What's there to celebrate this holiday season - the end of a terrible year. It would have been only our second Christmas together. I guess I don't have any need to go Christmas shopping now. My family is scattered from east coast to west coast; this year I believe we all are going to donate money to various causes, hopefully also mine, instead of buy things nobody really needs and pay tons for shipping. So the cats don't need anything, and they don't use leashes or toys or clothing, like dogs do. I bought Brindi a lined raincoat last winter but she could use a better raincoat to cover her head - it helps keep the house cleaner too. 

 

Brindi home by Christmas? . . . probably not.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 

(Halifax, December 5) Despite the postponement of a December 16 judicial review intended to bring about the dog’s release, Brindi’s supporters across Canada continue to hope that the dog, already impounded for over four months, will go home in time for Christmas.

Due to recent actions of HRM legal counsel, the judicial review of By-Law A-300 on Animal Control by the Supreme Court was delayed and is now scheduled for January 5. Solicitor Blair Mitchell, acting on behalf of Brindi’s owner, Francesca Rogier, applied for the judicial review in early November.

In a related matter, this week a judge granted Mitchell’s request for permission to have dog expert Silvia Jay assess Brindi’s behaviour. However, the court-ordered assessment, originally scheduled for today at the SPCA pound, was postponed pending clarification of the order’s wording. HRM continues to deny Rogier’s requests to see Brindi, who she has not seen since July 24, nor will Rogier be allowed to be present during the assessment.

Meanwhile, plans are in place for a benefit concert this weekend at Bearly’s Pub in Halifax to help raise funds to help Rogier pay for Brindi’s defense. Already in the thousands, the total increases with each new delay. A further benefit is scheduled for December 10 at a comedy club in Montreal.

END

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I just sent this out to the local media. I don't expect it to be printed anywhere since it's the weekend and they don't seem to do much on weekends. I posted it because it is the easiest way for me to respond to the many inquiries I've received today. I was exhausted last night and spent most of today resting. It really doesn't look like I'll see Brindi before New Year's. It's a low blow to say the least, after months of working only on this. 

Silvia Jay is ready to go to the SPCA Monday. I sincerely hope we get the go-ahead in time. 

Though the turnout was not huge, we had a productive meeting last night at Dalhousie, very productive in fact! There is a core group of supporters working actively on a number of things, and in some ways this is preferable to a lot of turnout with little action. 

And even though the court proceedings for that day are now only about preliminaries, there's a possibility of setting up a chain of demonstrations across the country before the 16th, from Halifax to Moncton, Montreal, Calgary, and places in BC. Folks everywhere are invited to join in, send me ideas! It may be as simple as gathering your friends together with Brindi's photo and recording a group chant, who knows? 

-

Update

Silvia Jay is slated to be at the SPCA at 9 am Friday morning. They are under a court order to let her see Brindi and are to be advised to allow her the space to work with her - unmonitored. 

Without going into too much detail - it seems to me the city is doing its best to stall anything else we do, even things they already agreed to, like providing information about Animal Services officials. Stall. More money, less time, and they just keep on keeping on. I don't understand it. Is the goal to keep people safe from dangerous dogs, or to be right no matter what? Is it no difference to the lawyers whether it's a case about property lines or a dog that means so much to me?

Meanwhile, our meeting at Dalhousie is tomorrow night, Student Union room 316, 7:30 pm. Finally I will absolutely have to be driving into town.

Odd as it may seem in this context, it so happens I have two tickets to DJ Mark Farina at the Pacifico club for tomorrow night - starts right after the meeting. They can go to the highest bidder, whoever shows up. The tickets are worth $20 each in advance, $30 at the door. 

If nobody wants them, maybe I'll ask Bob Riley to step out... ; )

And since each time the city stalls or blocks something, it adds up in my bills, if I may, here's another plug for the epier.com auction - to put in a plug: time is ticking away on it too, and the quilt is still up for sale; there is still time to get it made and sent out before Christmas! Same for the pretty porcelain figurine, the Hallmark Legacy Keeper, and of course the candy-striped dog sofa. Please pass it around!  And thanks once again to all those who have bidded and won other items, as well as their generous donors. More is on the way!

Wake up, it's show time! Two weeks to go!!

Okay, I haven't blogged anything for days because the days have been so rocky, and when stuff happens I need time to absorb and recover and then emails take over...

SO I originally posted this under "seven days to go" - and that shows you how messed up I am trying to keep track of my own life. I've been answering emails back and forth since Monday at a record-breaking case with all sorts of folks including my "solicitor" - at every turn it seems the city's "solicitors" are sending objections to things they already agreed to, generating extra work, time, money for both of us. 

I can report quickly, the Dec. 2 hearing was nearly blown off course because at the last second, the city tried to block it by calling for it to be postponed and merged into the Dec. 16 hearing which is of a different nature altogether. Somehow they succeeded, but not totally. 

I am glad to be able to report that we are getting a court order today for the trainer Silvia Jay to visit Brindi at the SPCA and do an assessment - something I requested through David Green way back in, what was it, August?? The city turned it down then. Now it's not a request; it's a court order. 

Silvia Jay, who I hope will be available, has only tomorrow and Friday to get to the SPCA. And I really hope the shelter will cooperate, the weather will cooperate, and she can do whatever she needs to do in time. 

I am not sure what other details are wise to share, actually, but my lawyer has been working intensely on this for a long time now and we are gearing up for the 16th. I think it is safe to say we have a good case, very good, especially since there is not much on the other side. The attempt late last Friday to block a Tuesday morning hearing was really unexpected, since the lawyers already conferenced with a judge and the city had plenty of time to object before then. They did not leave much time for my lawyer to block their block... It is wonderful that he managed to succeed in getting a conference in chambers; truly a great thing. 

BUT, and it's a BIG BUT (even though I dropped another five pounds): the city, as I was told at the outset by so many lawyers here, is not at all worried about the cost to them of long lawsuits or any legal proceedings, or how long an animal stays locked up. The city's lawyers - somehow there are two of them on the case now - are very likely to appeal if we win next week. They have deep pockets and all the time in the world. They have indicated they do not plan to release Brindi immediately if we win on the 16th. 

So it's another Catch-22, really; if we lose, she'll have to stay there longer while we appeal. If we win, they are going to do all they can to hang on to her so they can appeal. 

In case it wasn't already crystal clear, this is no fight for the faint-hearted. Right now I do feel faint, actually. No sleep and not sure what to do from one hour to the next, as important news comes in every minute. I've been on the phone a lot with D.A.I.S.Y?'s formidable director, Heather Anderson in Calgary, who is rallying more troops, including a man from the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies and others from Voice for Animals, Prairie Dog Society, and NOKA (a no-kill group). Heather has been speaking to reporters , animal services, the mayor's secretary, and anybody else who will listen; she also rallied two women activists way out in BC, one of whom is mailing out an amazing first-person story by Brindi, about Brindi. 

There is talk of a big protest out in Calgary also - it could be quite interesting. The Montreal contingent of angels carry on their plans for fundraising and letter-writing; publicity is so important for the comedy night on Dec. 10. 

I have been getting good luck emails from people in Brazil and Holland; I've been messaging the whole thousand-odd members on the Facebook group, all over the place, and my fingers are aching, while my cats politely visit my bed-office purring their hunger, hoping I'll look up long enough to notice and get my butt downstairs to feed them. 

Tomorrow night is already the day of the meeting at Dalhousie, in the Student Union tomorrow night! And I have to see a dentist in the afternoon, a remnant of normal life cropping up; also I have to work on the auction.

I have been trying to get into Halifax for several key errands for a week and a half now. Every day something happens or I am not awake enough to do it. It's maddening. 

The sun is shining and I just want to sleep. But we are tough, this scattered group, and we are going to make some big noise, one way or the other. You can't kill a dog for a list of grievances that include not having a dog tag, or getting loose twice, for goodness' sake! Animal Services apparently added those to the minor incidents she had in order to make a claim that I had "many chances" - and hope that people won't ask what exactly they mean by that - which they then parlay into a death sentence. If I had to compare it to something, it would be like having a few parking tickets, running a stop sign, and a fender-bender or two add up to losing your license AND your car. But the comparison doesn't work because in those instances, you'd get the chance to go to court if you wanted to - without a lawyer. Not to mention your car is not a living breathing thing.

My stomach is gurgling, and I am drifting. 

Those bones

Man, is it me, or is it just impossible to escape dogs? Staying home won't protect me from the stab of pain I can get from the sight of a happy canine. Every time I turn on the TV, pet food commercials and Animal Channel vet shows, and somehow an incessant stream of dogs popping up in the most unlikely programs one way or another. Even comedy shows. And tonight CTV's story about protecting your pets during the holidays, featuring a beautiful blond lab in its lead images.
I can't escape.
And yet I have to, as two women tried to tell me earlier tonight. They came to pray with me. We discussed forms of faith for a bit, but it was mainly to pray that they were here. To me, the labels you use aren't as important as the intention behind them, the sincerity of the faith and the love. And that was clearly there - and just all right with me.
Will it help to banish all the dogs so that I can concentrate? There are chewed bones and a makeshift dog bed underneath my drawing table, where I'd have Brindi stay while I worked. There's a few more bones lying around in my bedroom, and of course the big padded bed in the center of the kitchen. Sigh.

New and sad discovery- and a plea to readers

It looks like the officer behind Brindi's muzzle order and her seizure and euthanization order - the man who swore an oath that she is dangerous and then took her out of my house and about 100 feet into public space without using a muzzle, Tim Hamm - is the same person responsible for last year's case of a dog with one incident of attacking a greyhound, and never bit a human, and was put down. 

Why am I not surprised? I am only surprised to realize that my first lawyer was fully aware of this connection and did not mention it to me. I wish I had known. I still don't know who the owner of that dog was and I would so much like to find out what happened - were they ever charged with anything? I only want to get the court records. It's not unimportant; there may be a very deadly pattern here that should be dealt with.

Apparently Hamm is speaking to others about my case. He is now claiming he never charged me with an offense because he thought I was too poor to pay the fine. That's what he says orally. (In his affidavit, he says other things. But the police file contains email correspondence between him and one of the owners that contradicts those things. It's provable but it just takes time - and this lost time is the crime in this case!) Mr. Hamm also seems to be claiming that he believed I would simply sign over Brindi, rather than fight to get her back. AS says most owners just do this. I don't know what their dogs did, but I would never just turn over a dog like Brindi and anybody who ever met me with her could tell that in a second. He sat and gabbed with me all about her for over an hour; he knew very well I wouldn't sign her over just like that - ever. You'd have to be deaf, blind, and thick to not see how much I love Brindi and how proud I am of her. In late July she was doing so beautifully. We had our routines worked out perfectly.  

  

I suppose the information I received is technically hearsay. But this is not an affidavit or a court of law, it's a blog. But there is also a report online about his past work.
Both of his claims are rather implausible in my view, based on my prior personal encounters with him, in which I was very clear about how important she is to me and how much I would do to insure she is okay and behind a fence - and gets extra training. Just not credible at all. 

The man had only two years of experience on the job, admitted he knows little about dogs, and had a bad back. One would think that he ought to be very concerned about taking a presumedly dangerous dog out of a house without putting on the muzzle he himself ordered (and used as grounds to seize her after a non-injury event). He signed an oath that she was dangerous; he ordered the muzzle - if he doesn't use it, and we know he is no dog whisperer, doesn't it cast some doubt on his own sworn statements?

What if it were true, what if Brindi were dnagerous? What if somebody had been walking a dog along the road just then? With his lack of experience and knowledge, he coulnd not have controlled her. He had no gloves or a pole or a muzzle. He was both breaking the order and risking public safety. She went quietly and obediently and sat curled up in the truck's refrigerator-like cage compartment, never making a sound. Was friendly as you could ever want. He knows very well that she is not a dangerous dog. And that is my claim.

Right now, Mr. Hamm may be the mainstay of the city's defense of my case against it and the law. So far none of the other dog owners have agreed to enter a statement (affidavit) against us. And in fact our case doesn't require them, since we are challenging the law. The city needs to defend itself regarding the soundness of the law. Today I received a second affidavit sworn by him that the city wants to use on Dec. 16. It does not relate to the principal issues of our case - and remember, we are bringing the case, I am not defending myself because nobody is charging me with anything. I wish they would, it would save a lot of money and time.) So that affidavit is something that actually does not belong in the courtroom. We have filed objections and are waiting the results but it is going to take more time.

I haven't been able to bring myself to read it just yet. I already had another totally sleepless night after receiving this information around 10 pm last night. I wish I had known it before I wrote the press release. How many more dogs has he caused to be put down?

I would like to say again that I am so terribly sorry about last year's case and I believe it was very wrong. I so wish it had been publicized because I really believe it would have garnered a lot of public support. It is a tragedy that it happened and a tragedy that nobody evidently knew about it. Would A300 be written the way it is now? I wonder. At the very least, I would like to reach out to that family and express my sympathy.

The danger is human and real and it is everybody's worry until things change for the better. And they are not going to change for the better until more people get upset enough to do something about it.