Letter to the Editor: TOH Animal Shelter Duping the Public
Concerned Hempstead Town resident Lucille DeFina voices several serious concerns with the town's animal shelter.

The following is from Hempstead Town resident Lucille DeFina.

To the Editor,

Recently you published an article about the Town of Hempstead Animal Shelter scoring high marks on their inspection from the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets. I would like to inform you that this is an inspection that is almost impossible to fail. They merely inspect the basics, such as clean food and water.

Publicizing this inspection is an extension of continually misleading and manipulating the public. Due to the pressure that the public has made on the town after the banning of a few rescuers a year-and-a-half ago, the town was forced to implement policies, procedures and programs that have been non-existent at the Hempstead Animal Shelter.

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THE COST OF KILLING ANIMALS
SINCE TOWN SUPERVISOR KATE MURRAY TOOK OFFICE IN 2003, THE ANIMAL SHELTER BUDGET INCREASED BY AN ASTRONOMICAL 103%, FROM $3,500.000.00 TO $7,100.000.00.

AS IF THAT WASN’T ENOUGH,

The following article was recently brought to our attention and we couldn't resist posting it for you all.  Check this out!

Euthanasia: the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals (as persons or domestic animals) in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy. (Webster's 10^th Collegiate Dictionary).

Thanks to you folks who visit the shelter and report back to us!  The situation is dire for the animals. Click here voice-message.wav  to listen to our voicemail.  Here is part of the text of that voicemail:

"Hi, we just caught up with the the whole blog. I think at the library. We have no computer and first we wanna say thank you to Keller. If your name off for her reply to someone, someone who is, shouldn't even be allowed on the site, telling people take up your leash and and come and volunteer to the woman not read anything on the blog for a year that volunteers are what we are fighting for. Anyway neither you know they have Michelle answered it is so beautifully so beautifully but we also see it the end that apparently there is still no heat or hot water in the shelter. We just wanted to mention that one, one of our friends so the little blurb in Tuesday before the last night time meeting"

Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray runs a tight fiscal ship. In a time of falling sales- and mortgage-tax revenues, her 2012 budget is balanced without a property tax increase. By reducing the workforce through attrition, she doesn't have to make layoffs or cut services now that hard times are here.

What Murray, 49, of Levittown, hasn't been able to do in her four terms is cut the many layers of patronage that the Republican Party demands of elected officials in its historic base, a town Republicans have run for 110 years. That flaw has led to the greatest embarrassment of Murray's tenure: poor conditions at the town's animal shelter, which has a budget of $7 million a year. High salaries for thaose with political connections but not the proper work credentials have led to continued protests by animal-rights activists, a criminal investigation by the county district attorney and a financial audit by the state comptroller. Murray, whose weak excuse is that no one told her of any problems, seems to have put a skilled staff in place at last.

Democratic challenger Gary Port, 49, a lawyer from West Hempstead, says he would work to modernize the zoning laws to jump-start the economy and fill vacant storefronts. Port, a local business leader, scoutmaster and youth baseball coach, has served 25 years in the military. A lieutenant colonel in the Army Reserve, Port is the legal adviser to the 78th Division commander. Port has made the animal shelter a key issue, but he doesn't offer any transformative ideas for the town or have the executive experience to manage such a large local government. Newsday endorses Murray. hN

ONE THOUSAND LETTERS TO SAVE OUR ANIMALS
Hope for Hempstead Shelter hand delivered countless complaint letters to the
New York State Comptroller regarding TOHAS, demanding a fiscal and
operational audit.

MORE SILENT KILLING. REST IN PEACE, AUBREY, YOU ARE JUST ONE MORE CASUALTY OF THE MANY, DURING THIS GOOD-FIGHT FOR TOTAL SHELTER REFORM.

Despite the fact that Kate Murray’s “Chief of Staff's” child, employed at the shelter because daddy thought TOHAS was a “Doggy Disneyland,” desperately tried to save sweet Aubrey, even offered to cover expenses, but instead, TOHAS murdered this sweet peanut of a dog…..for NO VALID REASON.