Eastpointe worker throws out road kill in park dumpster

EASTPOINTE, Mich. (WJBK) - Some Eastpointe residents complain that a neighborhood park is a dumping ground for dead animals.

And they say what's even more troubling is that a city worker us putting them there. 

There are dead squirrels and what looks like a possum - most of these animal carcasses were unbagged in a city dumpster open for anyone to reach into the side and touch.

An Eastpointe animal control officer dumping some road kill Tuesday afternoon at Kennedy Park is not something Eric DeRosia wanted to see on his lunch break.

"I took a lunch break on the side of the road and just witnessed animal control dumping some animals into a dumpster," DeRosia said.

After he lost his appetite, he pulled out his cell phone, posting the video on Facebook quickly getting thousands of views. The former Eastpointe resident says he just wanted his old neighbors to know what was going on.

"I was concerned about health issues, things like that, especially being at a city park," he said.

People living in Eastpointe are outright disgusted.

"I mean it's just ridiculous, it's a park, kids play over here," said Nakaia Hanerie, an Eastpointe resident.

"This is a park and regardless of what kind of animal it is, they shouldn't do that, period," said Latrese Bursey, a resident. "I'm sure there are different ways you can go about discarding animals."

City officials are claiming the officer was not dumping illegally. City Manager Steve Duchane said in a statement:

"She is supposed to bag them and take them to a shelter for disposal if they are dogs and cats however in this case she could dispose of them as road kill. These were road kill, squirrels, possums no dogs or cats as reported to me by her supervisor."

He also added that residents may do the same, as long as the animals are in bags or containers. Something the animal control officer did not do for every animal.

DeRosia, hasn't liked all the attention from his video, and has taken the post down. But it's out there and the conversation about animal disposal everywhere is just getting started.

"Even if they're saying its road kill, things they're scraping off the ground, squirrels are known to have rabies, kids are playing in the park," he said.

There were plenty of kids in the park Tuesday and the dumpster is open on the side where a child could easily reach right through.

As far as why these carcasses weren't bagged, Eastpointe officials say bagging is only a preferred method and not necessarily required. But the pressure is on them now, lots of calls asking for a policy change.

There will be no disciplinary action for the animal control officer but she will be advised to dump her road kill at a different city dumpster from now on, the city said.