Hempstead animal shelter smacked with two lawsuits

Two lawsuits citing political abuse, corruption, nepotism and cronyism were filed against the Town of Hempstead Animal Shelter in Wantagh. The complaints were brought up on Dec. 12, on behalf of shelter employees Nancy Giris, Dolores Stormo and Wendy Cariello along with animal advocate Diane Madden. 

Both lawsuits, filed in federal court against the Town of Hempstead, Former Supervisor Kate Murray, Supervisor Anthony Santino, Animal Shelter Director Michael Pastore and others, are claiming a hostile work environment and retaliation.

“These are first amendment retaliation lawsuits,” Jonathan Tand, lawyer, explained. “The reason we are here is due to the rampant corruption in the town and the mistreatment of the animals at the shelter.”

Tand noted that the issues began when Director Michael Pastore was hired to take over operations more than two years ago. “The animals are being used as weapons for political retaliation,” he added.

Town officials declined to comment on the lawsuits. “The town does not comment on pending litigation,” said Hempstead Town spokesman Mike Deery.

“When I see animals being mistreated and programs taken away, it’s hard,” said Stormo, a volunteer coordinator who worked with animals for 19 years. “He is trying everything he can to make us leave and push us out. I take it very personally.”

The employees said Pastore has made the shelter a terrible place to work and makes it extremely difficult to perform their duties properly.

“He is a tool of the machine there,” Tand said about Pastore. “The shelter is now a haven for cronyism and political appointees go there, whether they were experienced or not.”

Tand added that the town also tried to remove an experienced behaviorist to fill the spot with someone’s boyfriend and that Pastore and others like him, refer to the animals as “inventory.”

“We were a very pro-adoption facility where we cultivated community service programs and rescue programs and took a proactive approach on rehabilitating the animals,” said Giris, an adoption coordinator. “When Mike Pastore took over, he and I couldn’t come to terms and he took a very systematic approach. ‘This isn’t an adoption center,’ he would say, ‘this is a shelter. Out the door means out the door.’” 

Giris noted that “out the door” refers to transferring the animals to another shelter or even by euthanization. Pastore doesn’t care how the animals leave as long as they leave, she explained.

Giris said she became more and more marginalized as time went on and was taken off public media events. “It was a way to keep things quiet. He doesn’t put any value on adoption.”

The shelter on Beltagh Avenue is funded through taxpayer dollars in which $3 million goes towards party payroll, Madden said.

Madden said she wants the government’s hands off of the rescue and adoption aspects. “We want Mike Pastore out,” she said. “We want to restore the shelter to the way it was.”

Giris said she has also tried to deal with these problems diplomatically in house and privately with both Pastore and Supervisor Santino. She has sent emails and called, but has had no response. She said she was also marginalized in her access to information to do her job efficiently. Her community service project, which she founded four year ago, was also taken away from her.

“What they have shown us is that they are going to take the shelter back and use it as a patronage mill,” Madden said. “They have people who are not experienced and they are pushing out all of the experts. They have had every opportunity to prove to the public that they can take $4 million to help animals, when instead all they’ve done is revert the shelter back.” 

Going forward, Madden said they would like to privatize the shelter.

“We want to see positive change at the shelter,” Tand added. “This is all about finding dogs and cats a loving home and bringing a pro-adoption mentality back.”