Ontario SPCA asks court to dump Toronto Humane board

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, January/February 2010:

TORONTO–Directing animal care at the Toronto Humane Society
since a November 26, 2009 raid that brought five arrests of THS
senior personnel for alleged neglect of animals, the Ontario SPCA on
December 23, 2009 asked Ontario Superior Court to remove the THS
board of directors and appoint a receiver to oversee operations.
Responding to earlier filings by Toronto Humane, Ontario
Superior Court Justice Ian Nordheimer on the same day ruled that
animal care at the shelter must “remain under the control and
direction of the Ontario SPCA,” and refused to quash the Ontario
SPCA search warrant.
“But four weeks is too long for what has effectively become
an occupation of the humane society to continue, Judge Nordheimer
said,” according to Anna Mehler Paperny of the Toronto Globe & Mail.
“Judge Nordheimer ordered the Ontario SPCA to turn over all
potentially sensitive documents, including scans of the humane
society’s hard drives, to a third party, and to allow all humane
society employees not facing criminal charges to return to work,”
Paperny wrote.

“About 20 to 25 employees and 15 board members were allowed
to return and resume administrative work on December 29, 2009,”
wrote Allison Jones of Canadian Press.
Elaborated Toronto Star staff Jesse McLean and Daniel Dale,
“Former humane society president Tim Trow, chief veterinarian Steve
Sheridan, and three other senior managers were all charged after the
Ontario SPCA raid, and remain banned from the shelter under their
bail conditions. The Ontario SPCA had also maintained a no-entry
list of more than 30 people who were not charged.”
“One of the Ontario SPCA’s lawyers said that investigators
are unearthing evidence that could lead to as many as two dozen more
criminal animal-cruelty charges,” recounted Paperny of Globe & Mail.
The Ontario SPCA has alleged that only between 50 and 60 of
the more than 1,000 animals at the shelter at the time of the raid
were in adoptable condition.
The Toronto Humane Society leadership in a countersuit has
accused the Ontario SCPA of defamation, trespass, and negligent
investigation.