In January 2023, the Pensacola Humane Society Board of Directors filed claims against six of its former employees, but those claims have now been dropped. With all lawsuits and countersuits being dismissed, the case has officially been closed.
On Tuesday, the Humane Society's attorney, Michael Kelly, filed a notice of voluntary dismissal concerning the board's claims against five former employees: Jessica Gehres, Raina Townson, Jessica Fischer, Melissa Garrett, and Alysia Martinez. On the same day, Russell Van Sickle, who represented these five individuals along with former Director of Development and interim Executive Director Amanda Moore-Joseph, also filed a notice that Moore-Joseph’s counter-suit against the Humane Society, former Board President Gerald Adcox, and Board Treasurer Barbara Sawyer had been dismissed as well.
According to the Escambia County Clerk of Court's website, the case was officially closed following the filing of these dismissal notices.
The original lawsuit from the Humane Society, filed in 2023, accused the former employees of having "intentionally and/or recklessly" disseminated information that caused significant financial harm to the organization, damaging its reputation and goodwill. These accusations stemmed from a press release published by Moore-Joseph and her co-defendants. In the release, they alleged misappropriation of funds designated for animal care and called for changes in board policy as well as the resignation of Adcox.
At the time the lawsuit was filed, Gehres had served as the Humane Society's bookkeeper, Townson as the volunteer coordinator, Fischer as the communication and marketing director, Garrett as the director of animal care, and Martinez as the director of shelter operations and foster coordinator. All of these individuals had left the Humane Society in early January 2023, shortly after the board terminated Moore-Joseph. Before their departure, they had moved all the animals from the shelter to other facilities.
At the time, Martinez expressed their collective sentiment: "Today they terminated Manda, and the rest of us are planning to resign. We didn’t want to leave the animals high and dry, so we are moving them to shelters that we have pulled from regularly."
Moore-Joseph was informed of her termination by email, in which the board cited reasons such as insubordination, failure to adhere to employment terms, and engaging in activities that reflected poorly on the organization. Additionally, she was accused of making statements, both verbally and on social media, that negatively impacted the Humane Society’s mission.
These public statements by Moore-Joseph came in response to Adcox's own public remarks, in which he denied any wrongdoing by the board and characterized her as a "rogue" interim executive director. In response, Moore-Joseph had highlighted the misappropriation of restricted funds, stating that the board had mishandled financial resources meant for specific purposes.
Before the lawsuit was filed, Moore-Joseph had expressed frustration with the board’s financial mismanagement, saying, "We were in a financial crisis, and they were spending restricted funds like they didn’t understand it’s illegal, especially if you can’t replace it. That was their fiduciary duty, and they failed miserably because they weren’t paying attention."
The Humane Society's lawsuit accused the former employees of providing a substantial amount of false and defamatory statements to various news outlets following the release of the press statement. Despite these claims, Sawyer, the board treasurer, acknowledged the organization’s financial troubles in a meeting with staff after the press release had been issued. In front of nearly 90 staff members, volunteers, and fosters, Sawyer admitted, "Yes, I know some things weren’t going as well as they should. Our cash has been depleted. I have been reporting that in my monthly report."
Meanwhile, another board member, Hank Gonzales, dodged questions during the same meeting about the alleged misappropriation of restricted funds. Despite staff members raising concerns about missing funds from restricted accounts, Gonzales declined to address these claims or explain why the money had been unavailable for important programs, such as feral cat initiatives or emergency vaccines.
Restricted funds refer to donations that are earmarked by donors for specific purposes, which means they can only be used in accordance with the donor’s instructions.
Two months after the Humane Society filed its lawsuit, Moore-Joseph responded by filing her own countersuit, alleging defamation and a violation of her rights under the Federal Whistleblower Protection Act. In her filing, she accused the board of spending restricted funds inappropriately and failing to comply with the terms of various grants awarded to the organization. To support her claims, Moore-Joseph submitted 35 exhibits as evidence.
The Humane Society eventually agreed to dismiss its claims against Moore-Joseph in August, a move that signaled the eventual closing of the entire case. In conjunction with this dismissal, a joint memorandum was issued, signed by Moore-Joseph and the current Humane Society CEO, Blake White. The statement emphasized that neither Moore-Joseph nor any members of the board had committed any wrongdoing.
"The parties appreciate one another’s positive contributions to the community and express their solidarity in regard to the pursuit of accountability regarding the use of funds of the Humane Society," the memorandum stated. "The parties reiterate that neither Ms. Moore-Joseph nor any member of the Humane Society Board misappropriated any funds for their personal use."
Tom McLaughlin, Pensacola News Journal 9/9/2024 https://www.pnj.com/story/news/local/pensacola/2024/09/09/pensacola-humane-society-aborts-lawsuit-against-former-staff-members/75100914007/?utm_campaign=vtla-eclips&utm_source=membercentralpublications&utm_medium=email&utm_content=september-9-2024
