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Who will Villaraigosa name to head embattled L.A. Animal Services?
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Mayor poses with puppy at signing of L.A.' mandatory spay/neuter law Photo: Al Seib/Los Angeles Times
As the fiscal year ends at midnight, so does the controversy-plagued tenure of L.A. Animal Services General Manager Ed Boks, leaving a key City department without leadership.
When Boks first announced his resignation in an April 24 letter to Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, he said he planned to take sick leave, followed by a two-week vacation, returning June 1 to close out the fiscal year, which ends today. Boks named Kathy Davis as acting General Manager during his absence.
Following Boks' departure after this announcement, various sources, including the City Council President's office, said they did not expect Boks to return after vacation to resume his duties as G.M. for the month of June. However, Boks continued to post on his semi-official city blog throughout the period when he was on sick leave and vacation.
[This blog has been a source of controversy throughout Boks' tenure, as he has in the past used it to respond publicly to community criticism. Although a disclaimer at the top of the page states "Nothing featured here represents the official position of the City of Los Angeles or LA Animal Services unless otherwise specifically noted." it also prominently features a bio of Boks, under the header "Ed Boks is the General Manager of LA Animal Services." In March of this year Councilman Dennis Zine publicly rebuked Boks for blogging on City time. At that time Boks said he only blogged on weekends, although timestamps on blog entries appear to indicate otherwise. Since Boks' return he has continued to blog during weekdays. He also continued to send notifications of blog updates from a City email address.]
In June Boks also resumed other G.M. duties; according to a spokesman he made official appearances, and he also responded to this reporter regarding a previous article on the long-incarcerated dog Stu. However, when asked specific questions about Departmental pursuit of this case in the face of expert opinion that Stu presents no danger to the public, he failed to respond.
Assistant General Manager Linda Barth speaks before City Council, next to soon-to-be-former GM Ed Boks Image: L.A. Cityview 35
At the time of Boks' resignation, several sources, including City Council President Eric Garcetti's office, stated that they did not expect Mayor Villaraigosa to name a new LAAS General Manager "anytime soon." However, the L.A. City Charter appears to require that the Mayor name a Department Head, even on an interim basis. Who will Villaraigosa pick?
Likely candidates would seem to include Kathy Davis, whose status since Boks' return has been unclear. Another potential candidate would seem to be Assistant General Manager Linda Barth, who has assumed a leadership role at L.A. Animal Services Board meetings.
But Barth is also a controversial figure. In a well-publicized incident in October 2008, over sixty percent of L.A. Animal services shelter workers' signed a petition of no confidence in both Boks and Barth. According to the L.A. Times the petition was initially presented to the Mayor, "[b]ut after several meetings with the mayor's staff, union officials and shelter workers who helped organize the petition effort said they were dissatisfied with the response."
Shelter workers then brought the petition before the City Council, where Councilman Dennis Zine promised he would ensure they would not be subject to Department retaliation. In the petition, workers said Boks and Barth were unresponsive to their concerns about shelter conditions and "threaten[ed] disciplinary action or reassignment for failing to realize [goals]."
The Times reported "Staffers also contend that Boks and Barth have 'allowed the field enforcement staff to fall to dangerously low levels'"
I called and emailed the Mayor's press office several times, seeking information on plans for LAAS leadership, however no comment from the Mayor was available at time of publication.
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