Source: Photo: (gorodenkoff/getty images)
INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis Animal Care Services is now facing a lawsuit on behalf of volunteers who say they’ve been threatened for talking publicly about shelter conditions.
Elaine Thiel and Mianna Ruiz are both volunteers at IACS. They have been critical of the conditions at IACS, which includes a drop in adoptions, overcrowding, and animal deaths. There have been several points when IACS has had to close it’s doors to new animals because of overcrowding concerns.
Thiel and Ruiz claim IACS has threatened to terminate their volunteer positions for criticizing the shelter, and that’s why the ACLU of Indiana has stepped in.
“We are doing this to make sure all volunteers at IACS can speak up and advocate for change,” said Thiel and Ruiz, “we want the best for the animals of Indianapolis and feel as though continuing to bring light to these issues is necessary for said change.” IACS says Thiel and Ruiz have violated the shelter’s policies on social media and its volunteer code of conduct.
Thiel and Ruiz want to continue speaking publicly, but they also want to stay on the team.
“IACS is a government entity, attempting to censor public discourse about the conditions at the shelter,” said Gavin Rose, senior staff attorney at the ACLU of Indiana, “these volunteers have the right to speak out about issues of public concern.”
Thiel and Ruiz signed a letter, along with ninety-five other past and present IACS employees/volunteers, citing IACS is in a state of crisis.
The state of IACS has become a topic of debate between Republican Jefferson Shreve and Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett. Shreve says Hogsett has failed to live up to his promise to get another animal shelter up and running in a timely fashion. Shreve also said, if elected mayor November 7th, he would donate his entire salary to the shelter.
The Hogsett Administration recently announced a location for the new IACS facility, which will be located on Indy’s south side, not far from the current Harding Street location.
