West Island SPCA victim of smear campaign

Victim of a smear campaign after a conflict over the custody of a sick puppy, the West Island SPCA says it lost thousands of dollars in donations and had to lay off a dozen employees . A court has just convicted two of his detractors for defamation, who published false messages on social networks.

Bianca Godin published a series of comments on Facebook, starting in January 2019, which criticized the treatment reserved for animals and which questioned the organization’s management of donations. The messages are published on the Citizens Against SPCA* group that she administers. She encourages the public to write unfavorable reviews against the SPCA on Google.

“Some of its publications target the leaders of the organization. She doubts their integrity and morality. However, she mainly criticizes [leur] management of the organization, the use of donations and the treatment reserved for animals,” notes Judge Judith Harvie of the Superior Court.

In March 2019, Bianca Godin contacted businesses in western Montreal to discourage them from partnering with the organization for fundraising.

She contacts the owner of the McKibbins pub, who is to hold a fundraising event in his restaurant, and she suggests that donations to the organization are being diverted and that the animals are not fed enough.

The owner does not believe the allegations, but “he does not want a protest at his restaurant and wants to protect the reputation of his business.” He cancels the benefit event.

In March 2019, employees of the Marriott Hotel at Montreal Airport, where a gala for the benefit of the SPCA was to be held, were also contacted by social networks to warn them against the organization. The SPCA decided to cancel the event, which it estimated could have brought in $70,000, because it feared demonstrations and mayhem. The judgment does not, however, specify who the authors of the defamatory messages are in this case.

At the same time, another page, The Truth About SPCA De L’Ouest, published comments, between January and March 2019, which “insult the leaders of the organization, raise questions about their management, their probity and their treatment of animals , discourage donations to the organization and encourage the public to leave bad reviews about it on Google.

The SPCA claims that Sabrina Riedl is one of the administrators of this page, which the defendant denies. She claims that she was a director of The Truth About SPCA until December 2018 or January 2019. She has no memory of the other directors “since their identity and number would have varied over time”.

During the trial held until last February, the SPCA wanted to call Facebook to testify to find out the identity of the page managers, in vain. “The SPCA attempts to serve a summons on Facebook in Montreal, but is unsuccessful. She serves it in Ontario, but the company does not appear before the Court, [puisqu’elle] does not consider the request [comme] complies with the applicable rules, because it is not approved,” underlines the 31-page judgment.

For this reason, the judge concludes that the evidence does not demonstrate that Sabrina Riedl is indeed the administrator of The Truth About SPCA page.

“Hungry crooks”

Sabrina Riedl, however, admits to having sent a message to the business Steve’s Car Wash, on the eve of an event for the benefit of the SPCA, in February 2019. She suggests canceling the fundraising to avoid tarnishing the reputation of the car wash. auto. In particular, she maintains that the bosses of the SPCA are “hungry crooks”. The event fell through.

Judge Judith Harvie describes these assertions as “serious”, “especially against an organization whose survival depends on donations from benefactors”. In her decision, she orders the two women to stop broadcasting or circulating defamatory remarks against the West Island SPCA, on Facebook or through any other medium.

She orders Sabrina Riedl and Bianca Godin to pay $500 and $5,000 respectively to the SPCA de l’Ouest. The organization demanded $200,000.

The judge emphasizes that Sabrina Riedl’s message to Steve’s Car Wash is “wrongful, but it is a drop in the ocean of comments circulating.” She adds that the reach of Bianca Godin’s messages was limited since her page was only followed by 330 people.

Contacted by The Press, the director of the West Island SPCA says the last few years have been “long and difficult”. “We lost everything in this; 90% of our income has fallen. We met in the street. We no longer have refuge. We have 12 employees who lost their jobs,” says Rémi Brazeau. The organization is currently working with foster families to accommodate abandoned animals, while waiting to reopen a shelter.

“It caused great devastation,” continues Mr. Brazeau, who would have liked the defendants to be sentenced to higher sentences, although he accepts the judge’s decision.

Bianca Godin and Sabrina Riedl did not respond to our interview request.

* The group changed its name at least four times in a few months.

A puppy behind the smear campaign

The story of Marley, an 11-week-old puppy, is at the origin of the smear campaign which targeted the SPCA. On Christmas Eve 2018, the dog’s owners went to the vet. They then learned that Marley was suffering from Parvo, “a highly contagious disease, often fatal in puppies, which affects the animal’s intestines”, underlines the judgment. The masters are unable to pay for the operation. The veterinarian suggests they abandon the puppy and the clinic will try to find a partner to finance the treatment estimated at $14,000. If a shelter gets involved, they legally become the owner of the animal. The West Island SPCA stepped forward to raise money for Marley’s treatment, but refused to return the dog to his original family when it came time to place him for adoption. Marley’s story aired on CTV and drew criticism.