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

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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? 

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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.