Between March 25 and April 29, 2026, 42 dogs at the Harnett County Animal Shelter in North Carolina were euthanized using intracardiac injections without the required documentation or medical justification. State inspectors found no records explaining why the method was used on any individual animal.

When inspectors arrived, the shelter director asked them to show him where the rules said documentation was required. He then asked whether staff could write preemptive notes claiming dogs had low blood pressure so they would not have to document each case individually. He also argued the method was safer for staff because they were less likely to poke themselves with the needle.

These are not the responses of a director who made a mistake. They are the responses of a director who did not believe the rules applied to him and who asked staff to falsify records when caught.

Harnett County fined the shelter nearly $20,000. That works out to less than $500 per dog.

We are calling on the Harnett County Board of Commissioners to remove the shelter director from his position and conduct an independent review of euthanasia practices going back at least one year. A retraining program run by the same leadership that created this problem is not accountability.

We are also calling on the North Carolina Legislature to increase penalties for inhumane shelter euthanasia, require independent inspections of all county shelters on a regular schedule, and mandate public transparency reporting so communities know what is happening inside the facilities their tax dollars fund.

A $20,000 fine is not a deterrent. Forty-two dogs deserved better. So do the animals in every shelter across North Carolina.

Sign to demand real accountability in Harnett County and real reform statewide.