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Dog-kicking CEO of Centerplate is out

Desmond Hague was caught on video hoisting Doberman by leash

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Qualcomm Stadium concessionaire Centerplate accepted the resignation Tuesday of Desmond Hague, the golden-touched chief executive whose career crumbled spectacularly within days after the public release of a surveillance video showing him kicking a year-old dog.

His departure was first reported by U-T San Diego on Monday evening.

In a statement released early Tuesday, Centerplate officials named chief operating officer Chris Verros the acting CEO — and made no mention of Hague’s accomplishments over his five years at the multibillion-dollar conglomerate.

The move is “effective immediately, following the resignation of Desmond Hague from the company,” the statement said. “The decision comes as a result of Hague’s personal misconduct involving the mistreatment of an animal in his care.”

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Hague, who was hired at Centerplate in 2009 and doubled company revenues during his tenure, was seen abusing a small Doberman pinscher named Sade inside the elevator of a luxury high-rise in Vancouver in late July.

In late August, an employee of the Private Residences at Hotel Georgia sent a copy of the tape to animal-cruelty officials and to news outlets in British Columbia.

U-T San Diego was first to report the abuse in the United States. The Aug. 25 online report was subsequently picked up by national media, as Centerplate serves scores of stadiums and other venues, and petitions calling for Hague’s termination soon followed.

Hague issued a public apology and said he was ashamed and embarrassed at his behavior. He also said the dog was not his.

Centerplate initially responded last week by distancing the company from Hague’s activity and issuing a statement calling the incident a personal matter.

Later, Centerplate announced it was ordering Hague into therapy for anger-management issues and directing him to perform 1,000 hours of public service. The company also placed Hague on indefinite probation and announced he would spend $100,000 of his own money to establish a foundation to fight animal abuse.

None of it worked.

The black-and-white surveillance video was shown repeatedly on television and viewed hundreds of thousands of times online, prompting outrage across the continent.

Centerplate did not respond to follow-up questions Tuesday about the therapy, community service or establishment of a new foundation.

By early this week, almost 200,000 people were demanding Centerplate replace its CEO, and fans at venues served by the food-services giant were boycotting concessions.

Even San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer announced last week that he would review the city’s contract with Centerplate, a $17 million agreement that expires in February.

“From the moment I saw the video, I thought Mr. Hague’s behavior was inexcusable, and I’m not surprised that he has resigned," Faulconer said in a statement released Tuesday. "The current concessionaire contract at Qualcomm Stadium will expire in February 2015, and thus the city was already working on putting it up for competitive bid. The bidding process is expected to begin in the next several weeks.”

The San Diego Convention Center, which maintains a separate contract with Centerplate that runs to 2026, declined to comment on the company’s decision to replace Hague.

Readers were not so shy.

“Glad to see this cruel CEO held accountable, and San Diego Mayor Faulconer concerned about animal cruelty,” commenter Martha Sullivan posted below the story at UTSanDiego.com.

The Society for Protection of Cruelty to Animals in British Columbia seized the dog Aug. 21, the same day investigators received the video and executed a warrant at the Vancouver high-rise.

The SPCA in Vancouver said their investigation showed Hague was the dog’s owner, and said Sade showed signs of having been abused previously.

Under Crown Province rules, the owner has two weeks — which means until Thursday — to appeal for the dog’s return. If Hague does appeal the seizure, Sade will be made available for adoption.

The SPCA closed its criminal animal-cruelty investigation early last week and recommended charges be filed. A decision on that recommendation may take weeks or longer, an agency spokeswoman said.

Watchdog

Centerplate CEO animal controversy

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