Shelter director resigns in wake of pet’s death
Woman says her dog was euthanized after she made arrangements to pick her up
TEXARKANA, Ark. — Animal Care & Adoption Center Director Charles Lokey has resigned from his position effective immediately for health reasons, according to Texarkana, Arkansas, City Manager Dr. Kenny Haskin.
Lokey’s resignation comes days after Candis Fricks’ Facebook post on Tuesday about her dog, Ellie Mae, being euthanized at the shelter after Fricks stated she made arrangements by phone with shelter staff on Nov. 8 as the shelter was closing to claim the dog on Tuesday when it reopened.
On Friday afternoon, Fricks shared her feelings about Lokey’s resignation.
“I’m relieved. I’m really glad he resigned. I’m not sure if he was given a choice of two options. I’m glad to see something done. He was obviously scared,” she said.
The Fricks’ full American Pit Bull, which they had almost nine years, went missing on the afternoon of Nov. 1.
Fricks said she was in contact with the shelter on Nov. 4 and Nov. 6 to see Ellie Mae was at the shelter.
On Nov. 8, Fricks’ cousin was at the shelter looking for his own dog and saw Ellie Mae.
“She (Ellie Mae) was very fond of him (Fricks’ cousin),” Fricks said Friday afternoon.
Fricks said her cousin sent a picture of Ellie Mae to her at 4:37 p.m. Nov. 8. Fricks got in touch with a shelter office who said the shelter would close in 10 minutes.
“I got off the phone with them at 4:56 p.m. … When I talked to the lady Friday (Nov. 8), she said I have to have a picture of the dog and myself in the picture. I remember laughing, saying I don’t think I had ever taken a picture with her, but my kids had. I wound up finding picture of us together,” Fricks said.
Fricks said she pleaded with the shelter official so she could pick up the dog on Nov. 8. However, the shelter official assured her Ellie Mae would be fine at the shelter until Fricks could pick her up Tuesday.
The shelter was closed last Monday, Veterans Day, but Fricks said she saw a post indicating adoptions would be occurring that day. She went to the shelter and intercepted two men feeding the
dogs. While the shelter was closed, the two men said they knew Ellie Mae and reported she was doing fine and told Fricks her dog would be fine overnight because it would have access to a dog house as the colder temperatures set in.
Fricks said when she arrived Tuesday to claim Ellie Mae, the shelter officials asked for her name and knew she was there for the dog Fricks’ cousin saw on Nov. 8.
A shelter staff member called Fricks’ vet to confirm ownership. “She never wanted to see the picture after getting vet confirmation,” Fricks said.
Ellie Mae was also going to be microchipped before being released from the shelter, Fricks said.
Fricks said when shelter staff could not initially locate Ellie Mae, they said they would call her back. She went to her vehicle to leave.
“I never left. I called my husband ... and he says ‘go back inside,’” Fricks said.
The second time she went into the shelter, Ellie Mae still could not be located.
“I got back in the car, frantic, freaking out, going hysterical,” she said.
Fricks’ husband was en route and they went into the shelter together.
A female animal control officer and the woman who had assisted Fricks on her two previous times inside the shelter that day were there.
The Frickses were told animal shelter director, Lokey, was on his way.
When Lokey arrived, he was with two police officers she said.
According to Fricks’ Facebook post, Lokey “unzipped his jacket in a manner as if he were bowing up, raised his voice at me as he told me the dog was euthanized.”
Lokey was contacted by the Gazette on Thursday and referred all questions to Haskin.
Haskin said Lokey turned in his resignation late Thursday. Lokey had served as the shelter’s director for six years,
“The City thanks Mr. Lokey for his service and for his many accomplishments at the ACAC during his tenure. The City recently committed to spending close to $1 million for improvements to our animal facilities and the ACAC remains a top priority for us,” Haskin stated in a press release early Friday. “We anticipate moving forward from this point, and I will be naming an interim director soon.”
Since the incident, Haskin had been conducting an administrative investigation and taking statements from all parties involved he told the Gazette Thursday. On Friday, he said that investigation continues and declined further comment.
When asked what she wanted to come from this experience, Fricks said “For the sake of a dog getting out and picking it up, I don’t know the procedures but there have to be better policies and procedures … better organization,” she said.
A Facebook page has been established calling for a protest at the Texarkana Animal Care and Adoption Center on Dec. 7.
The event is slated for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on that day. The protest is in response to Fricks’ experience and is hosted by Samantha Ramistella Martin.
Fricks said she did not personally know Martin and she was not sure if she would attend the protest.
“It depends on what happens between now and then. … If changes are made before then and it is obvious, then I probably wouldn’t. But if nothing has been changed, then yes I probably would,” she said.