Veterinarian charged with animal cruelty requests settlement from veterinary board

Millard Lucien Tierce, DVM, 71, of Fort Worth, Texas, has filed a motion to settle the complaint against him with the Texas State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners, according to documents filed with the Texas Office of Administrative Hearings. Tierce's license was suspended in May after his April 30 arrest on suspicion of animal cruelty.

Dr. Millard Lucien TierceThe Harris family of Aledo, Texas filed a complaint after finding their 4-year-old Leonberger, Sid, alive at the clinic months after they had been told the dog was euthanized. Upon investigation, police and board investigators found unsecured controlled substances, bugs and other patients clients thought had been euthanized.

The licensing hearing previously scheduled in June and rescheduled to Aug. 25 has been cancelled. The details of the settlement will instead be discussed at the board's meeting on Oct. 21. The veterinary board's public information officer Loris Jones was unable to comment on the details of the settlement, however, board rule 575.29 says that If the board rejects the proposed settlement, the complaint will go before an administrative law judge, or the board may direct the executive director to take other action as appropriate. If Tierce doesn't sign in agreement or respond within 14 days of receiving the agreement, a hearing will be scheduled before the administrative law judge.

The Harrises have filed a million-dollar lawsuit against Tierce to recoup medical expenses as well as alleviate the emotional damages the situation has caused. An attorney for the Harris family said that its unclear how this settlement will affect the lawsuit, but at this time Tierce has not made motions to settle regarding that matter.

Kimberly Davis of Dallas County, Texas, filed a second million-dollar lawsuit against Tierce in June. Davis' Chihuahua Hercules was recovered from the clinic during the police investigation but was in such poor condition he had to be euthanized.