LAAS Employees Robbed and Battered Animal Rescuer

Monday, May 21st 2007

PRESS RELEASE
Forwarded to ADL-LA


Animal rescuer Laural Kinder, Director of "Kinder Rescue" filed a police report against the Los Angeles Department of Animal Services today when she was allegedy robbed and battered  by LAAS employees while taking photos of available shelter animals as East Valley staff was preparing to move to their new headquarters.

Ms Kinder is a member of New Hope for Animals, an adoption program endorsed by the department which allows certain non profit animal organizations to bail out shelter animals at a reduced price. She is a familiar face at various shelters, and well known for her rescue work as well as assisting other rescuers.

Ms Kinder was in the process of taking photos of the animals as well as interacting with them, when she asked the employees what was going to happen to these particular dogs ( and one lone rabbit ) since the shelter personnel appeared to be leaving some of them behind. The personnel immediately confronted her, and told her to stop taking photos. As a New Hope member, and since the department is a public facility, she felt she was within her rights to continue taking photos of the now apparently doomed animals.

This prompted immediate aggressive action against her by the employees.
Taking her camera from her by force and removing the chip,they then falsely accused her of trespassing. When she attempted to leave in her car, they locked the gate on her. 15 male officers and one female threatened her until she was prompted to call the police.

The police arrived and confiscated the chip, at which time Ms Kinder filed a battey and imprisonment charge against East Valley employees and the department.

It is unclear if she is considering a suit against the city, but she has contacted an attorney.

 

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