CACC management is extraordinarily sensitive to public criticism. The following threatening letter from CACC's flunkie lawyer and First Amendment Right detractor Stephen Younger is a classsic (and laughable) example of CACC's heavy-handed management style.
[letterhead]
Patterson, Belknap, Webb & Tyler LLP
1133 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10036-6710
212-336-2000
fax 212-336-2222
writer's direct line 212-336-2585
November 10, 1998
Barbara Stagno
In Defense of Animals
P.O. Box 702
Ardsley, New York 10502
Dear Ms. Stagno:
I am writing on behalf of the Center for Animal Care and Control (the "CACC") regarding recent statements made by you regarding the CACC. These statements were made by you on the Internet on October 13, 1998 which you sent to ar-news@envirolink.org (copy attached). Specifically, you make statements as to "CACC's horrid conditions and cruelty to animals" and even accuse CACC of offering a bribe to ex-employees to keep quiet. These statements are false and are make [sic] in reckless disregard to their truth.
Your statements are libelous and slanderous. Please cease from making such statements in the future or CACC will have no option but to take whatever legal steps are necessary to protect its interests.
Very truly yours,
/s/ Stephen P. Younger
Enclosure
354613.1
The internet communication that had the CACC (and HSUS) so bent out of shape:
[Note that the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), which is supposed to advocate for animals, has become CACC's newest, best buddy (after being paid $5,600 for an "on-site evaluation" of CACC's operations). HSUS's Sally Fekety <Salfek@aol.com> forwarded the critical email posted by Barbara Stagno to HSUS Companion Animal Director Martha Armstrong <hsusca@ix.netcom.com>who in turn sent it to CACC's Marilyn Haggarty-Blohm. Shame on HSUS for defending the indefensible and acting like a pathetic snitch.]
Subject: Fwd: [AR-NEWS:1494} Fwd: Channel 4 covers CACC story
Date: Thu, 15 Oct 1998 06:52:55 EDT
From: Salfek@aol.com
To: hsusca@ix.netcom.com
----------------------------------
Subject: Fwd: [AR-NEWS:1494} Fwd: Channel 4 covers CACC story
Date: Thu, 15 Oct 1998 12:18:42 -0500 (CDT)
From: bstagno@ix.netcom.com (Barbara Stagno)
To: ar-news@envirolink.org
----Begin Forwarded Message
Date: Tue, 13 Oct 1998 01:16:55 EDT
Subject: Channel 4 covers CACC story
As many of you know, this week's NY Magazine Cover Story is an expose on the horrible conditions and management of the NY City Shelter system, the CACC.
Tonight on the 11 pm news, NBC Channel 4 was the first channel to cover the issue. It was a well done story, in my opinion.
2 recently fired employees were interviewed (they had been fired because they wouldn't take a bribe to be quiet about shelter conditions) and the reporter, Melissa Russo, spoke emphatically about the numbers of healthy, adoptable animals killed daily. (As she stood talking in front of cat cages holding a kitten, another kitten in the cage above her was reaching out of the cage, touching her hair, jacket etc)
Kyle Burkhart of the CACC gave his usual responses, when shown an undercover video of a dog lying in his own feces in his cage. Kyle avoided the question of why the shelter hadn't cleaned his cage by saying that the dog looks like "he hadn't been cleaned his whole life!"
It was mentioned by Burkhart that people do not care about their animals, discard them and do not spay and neuter them. (Opinion: although thankfully the story was right on target by exposing the CACC's neglect of their responsibility to say the least, this fact about the public's mistreatment should be mentioned as well.)
YOU CAN HELP:
Please call NBC Channel 4 at 212-664-4444, and also contact their executive producer atjoel.goldberg@nbc.com and thank them VERY MUCH for doing this story.
Please also call other news program assignment desks to alert them to this week's NY Magazine cover story on the CACC's horrid conditions and cruelty to animals and ask that they do a story on the problematic and cruel shelter system in NY. This is a great chance to get the most coverage of this issue and put pressure on the CACC and the Mayor.
WABC-TV Channel 7: 212-456-7777, 212-456-2381
Fred Chisco, Chief Assignment Editor
WCBS-TV Channel 2: 212-975-432 and
Yvette Corperon, Assignment Editor 212-975-5967
WPIX-TV Channel 11: 212-210-2591 and
Karen Scott, News Director 212-2110-2400, email: nwpix@tribune.com
WNYW-TV Channel 5: 212-249-1182 and
Wendy Lehman, Assignment Editor 212-452-3808 or
Lisa Lopez, News Planning Editor 212-452-3803
WWOR-TV Channel 9: 201-330-3777 and
Elaine Higgins, Assignment Editor 201-330-2214
Last but not least, please buy NY Magazine this week and contact Editor-in-Chief Caroline Miller at 212-508-0500 to thank her and commend her for publishing this cover story on the CACC. Also write to her at:
Caroline Miller, Editor in Chief
New York Magazine
444 Madison Avenue
NY NY 10022-6903
Email her at: 104700.2560@compuserve.com
Write letters to the Editor of NY Magazine at NYLetters@aol.com
THANK YOU!
(Please forward this email to interested parties)