Reorganization of JCAC leads to retirement of director

We knew it would have something to do with the Turn 3 horses.

Full coverage of yesterday's blurb is in today's CitPat:

Animal shelter director retires
Thursday, June 12, 2008
By Holly Klaft
hklaft@citpat.com -- 768-4917

Kimberlee Luce, director of Jackson County Animal Control, has left her position at the agency following a county-requested shift in management and a court ruling that last year's seizure of 69 horses was improper.

Luce told officials Friday afternoon of her immediate retirement from Animal Control, where she began working as a secretary in 1986, County Administrator Randy Treacher said.

He said her decision to leave was a recent one.

"It was clear to her that the commissioners were looking at Animal Control moving in a different direction than it had been under her management," Treacher said. "Kim did a very honorable thing."

Luce decided to leave after it appeared there was no place for her in the reorganized agency, he said.

"She just didn't see herself fitting into that," Treacher said. A new Animal Control director will be named at a later date, he said.

Luce could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Jackson County Sheriff Dan Heyns took over Animal Control and its new $1.3 million facility, 3370 Spring Arbor Road, in March at the request of county commissioners. Commissioner David Elwell, who asked the county board to consider the change in supervision, said Animal Control and the Sheriff's Office often overlap.

The former Animal Control facility at 2004 N. Blackstone St. had been receiving poor grades from the state and was falling into disrepair. It met only minimum state standards and volunteers have said it was understaffed.

In May, Circuit Judge Thomas Wilson ruled that the county must repay the owner of horses taken from Turn 3 Ranch in Grass Lake Township after he determined the horses' forfeiture -- based on allegations of animal cruelty -- was improper. More than $133,000 was spent on care for the animals, and the county also could be asked to pay for lost stud fees, the value of the horses seized and foals born while in Animal Control custody.

Animal Control officials seized the horses based on a court order in the animal-cruelty case.

The two horsemen involved in the case were cleared of felony torture charges but still are awaiting trial on misdemeanor neglect charges.

The sheriff presented commissioners with a progress report on the facility and Animal Control operations on Friday, highlighting improvements in communication systems, training and record keeping.

Luce, a longtime Jackson-area resident, has said that limited resources made upkeep difficult at the facility.

"It's no secret we're understaffed," she said in July, when commissioners first considered the possibility of a new animal shelter. "But we do the best we can with what we have."

She told the Citizen Patriot in 1999 that her love for animals prompted her to accept a job with the agency.

But she said her work as Animal Control director was bittersweet.

"I can't say it's been all smooth sailing," she said at the time. "But I've learned a lot."

They went back almost 10 years for a quote?

I urge you to search this blog history for quotes made by JCAC Director Luce.

Why is Treacher speaking on her behalf? From his interesting and careful wording choices, I'd hate to have him speaking for me. Look up his past comments and actions on the case as well.

What a tangled web indeed.