By Vicky Quintanilla
On June 30, 2025 (min 29:25), Commissioner 𝗕𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹 publicly called animal advocates:
” these people that like to come and frustrate our meetings and accomplish nothing. Waste everybody’s time. We have to let them waste our time and waste their time. Especially with these animal people, I find them especially frustrating. They should be at the end (public hearing) and not wasting everybody else’s time.”
The Board pushed a procedural shift designed to 𝘂𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗽 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸—repealing a 12-year public-comment rule (2013-122) and shoving comments to the end through 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱-𝟬𝟲𝟰,
https://www.polk-county.tv/internetchannel/show/7675?site=1
Then came the July escalation.
𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆 𝟭, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 — The Board forced citizens to start speaking 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗮𝘁𝗵, one of the 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗽𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗙𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗮 𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝘆 to chillspeech (min 10:57).
https://www.polk-county.tv/internetchannel/show/7676?site=1
This is not a coincidence. This is a pattern; silencing and procedurally stripping away the community’s right to speak about the suffering inside Polk County Animal Control (run by Grady Judd).
𝗘𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵.
If they’re this desperate to silence us, it means our voices are having an impact.
𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 — 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘂𝗽 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝗕𝗢𝗖𝗖 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀.
Stand together.
Refuse to be intimidated.
Demand your constitutional rights to free speech — and remind them it is their constitutional duty to uphold the oath they swore to.
We speak for the voiceless.
Bill, you are paid to “waste your time” with your constituents. Vote the bum out..