COLUMBUS, Ga. ( WRBL )— Tuesday, eight city-workers were arrested in connection to the investigation of Columbus Animal Care & Control. It’s a result of years’ worth of dedicated civic engagement.
Meet Allie Johnson, Debbie Wooten, and Mimi Steger; three animal lovers behind the animal advocacy group Columbus Animal Allies. The three co-founders have been working together for two years.
“Our actual impetus to start out with was just frustration at the feeling that we were not being told the truth or getting the whole story from certain high up officials in the Columbus City government,” co-founder Allie Johnson said. “And so, we started requesting records and to be honest with you, we were absolutely shocked.”
One of the most shocking videos that took the internet by storm, the death of Chai, an owner surrender to Columbus Animal Care & Control (CACC). The 45-minute surveillance video obtained under the Georgia Open Records Act was posted to the Columbus Animal Allies’ Facebook page. It sparked hundreds of citizens to sign up and speak during Public Agendas of city council meetings.