MOUNT VERNON – MVPD Chief Roger Monroe issued the following statement this afternooon regarding a complaint made about a dog at 14 Kenyon Street.
“On 2-2-2015 it was noticed that there was a Facebook post about a dog who was being neglected at 14 Kenyon Street in Mount Vernon. An officer made contact and checked the situation and made a report. The dog warden was already aware of this situation. The owner was compliant with the law (ORC 959.13 cruelty to animals).
The previous comment that was made about this being a hoax was not made from the Mount Vernon Police Department. Over the night we received a large amount of calls via emails, phone calls into Dispatch/911 Center, Facebook, direct calls to the Police Department, and Mayor’s Office. I do not know how many the dog warden has received in reference to this dog.
This afternoon around 1 PM there was an incident where a motorist pulled a firearm on residences in that area because of this issue. We are extremely lucky that no one has been hurt at this point.
The update is that the dog is no longer at this residence according to the dog warden. It was not reported to me why the dog is not at the residence. I believe the dog warden has been on top of this issue and has done a good job.”
Chief Monroe also issued a public awareness message saying “the overwhelming amount of calls we received on this issue almost put this department in jeopardy. We had back logs of emails and phone messages and if something of a sensitive nature needed handled we would not have been able to handle it in a timely manner. This all stemmed from social media. It is a great tool when used responsibly but before posting please research and call the police first.”
