Former director drops wrongful dismissal lawsuit against Cherry Brook Zoo

Former Cherry Brook Zoo director LeonardCollrin is no longer suing the zoo'sboard of trustees for wrongful dismissal.

Board chair Heather Crawford said in a statement that the board received formal legal notification that a discontinuance has been filed with the Court of Queen's Bench.

"This development now concludes Mr. Collrin's legal action against Cherry Brook Zoo of Saint John Inc.," Crawford said.

Collrinfiled the wrongful dismissal suit against the board after he was fired in July 2016 from the zoo on the outskirts of Saint John.

He and his wife, LyndaCollrin, were evicted from a residence on zoo property soon after.Collrinstarted the zoo with his wife and was a paid employee for 37 years. LyndaCollrinworked as a volunteer.

The statement from the board saidno financial compensation was provided by the zoo's board of trustees to secure the discontinuance.

When reached for comment, Collrin said his decision to discontinue the lawsuit was based on his own financial situation and an unwillingness to spend a lot ofmoney pursuing the lawsuit.

"If I remortgaged my house to see this through to the end, because I'm quite justified in doing what I was doing, there would be no gain."

Collrin said taking into account his age, and how long it has gone on so far, he wasn't willing to continue.

"There are other considerations and for peace of mind, I'll get on with it. I'm calling it a forced retirement, whatever."

In itsstatement of defence, the board said zoo staff became aware of financial irregularities in April 2015 and the board was notified of the allegations on July 4, 2016, prompting an urgent meeting and an investigation.

The two sides offered differing accounts of how many purchases came to be handled at the zoo.

Collrinclaimed in his lawsuit that the zoo was unable to obtain its own credit, and the couple used their personal credit cards to finance "day-to-day operations," which were then reimbursed.

But the board saidthe zoo had the ability to get financing on its own and alleged theCollrins"were eager" to use their personal cards because of the rewards they could earn.

Investigation continuing

The board asked the Saint John Police Force to investigate possible financial irregularities and Crawford said that investigation is continuing, thoughCollrin said it had been dropped.

Crawford told CBC News the boardknew thediscontinuance was coming because the board had to sign off on it.

She said the board can nowfocus on making things better at the zoo in terms of sustainability and development.

"Donations are very important to us," Crawford said. "We're looking at plans to ensure the continued support of the community, what kind of additional support we might get from organizations.

"We're also looking at development for the future of the zoo, and how are we're going to continue to evolve it, and what's it going to look like in maybe 10 years time."

Crawford said the board has had no interaction with theCollrinssince July 2016.