Montgomery Animal Shelter's Chief Executive Steps Down

Former Board Members Accuse Crist of Mismanagement

The Montgomery County Humane Society's chief executive this month became the latest leader to resign amid infighting and questions about the animal shelter's finances and its reporting of adoption and euthanasia rates.

J.C. Crist, who served dual roles as chief executive and president of the board of directors, stepped down from both positions. Critics, including several former board members, accused Crist of fomenting a toxic culture on the board and poorly managing the nonprofit organization's finances during his three-year tenure.

Between 2005 and 2007, private donations declined by about 40 percent and the Humane Society's cash balance dropped from $1.8 million to $890,000, internal records show. The shelter had been running with no operating budget to guide its spending, several officials said.

About half of the board members have stepped down during the past year, some saying they were resigning because of frustrations with Crist. Three former board members said Crist would not provide them with financial statements, even when pressed at board meetings. One of them, Melissa Rubin, criticized Crist's reporting of adoption and euthanasia rates because he did not follow the same standards as some other shelters.

Crist said he resigned because his work at the shelter had become "personally consuming." He defended his record, saying he left an "incredible infrastructure that was successful."

"There's never been a question of our performance as far as saving animals and providing service to the community," Crist said.

A consultant, Nicholas Gilman, has been named interim chief executive, and the board is launching a national search for a permanent leader.

The Humane Society is under contract with the county government to serve as the official animal shelter, and county leaders are monitoring its problems.

"If they're fighting and ousting each other, as long as they are doing what they are supposed to do under the contract, that's what we care about and that's what we legally are able to deal with," said Jennifer Hughes, a special assistant to County Executive Isiah Leggett (D). "Our levers of control don't reach into the inner workings of the Humane Society."

Rubin, a senior vice president at the Humane Society of the United States, said she resigned from the Montgomery board this year in part because she "could never get a good answer" about Crist's adoption reporting method.

Montgomery recorded an adoption rate of 95.8 percent in the first six months of 2008, but Crist did not count animals with behavioral or health problems deemed to put the public at risk. Overall, the shelter found homes for 1,927 animals, but 541 animals were classified as "unadoptable" and euthanized. Crist said some other shelters use the same figuring method.

"There's no ifs, ands or buts about it," he said. "It's either adoptable or unadoptable. If it doesn't pose a risk to public health or safety, we consider it adoptable."