Lawsuit: Service dog charity used over $25,000 in donations for personal expenses
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – The founder of a former Ohio service dog nonprofit is facing a lawsuit over allegations that she used more than $25,000 in donations for personal expenses.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost filed a lawsuit in Franklin County Common Pleas Court on July 24 against the now-defunct Pawsible Angels Inc. and its founder Michele Frank. The Findlay-based organization was established in 2016 to train and provide service dogs for people with disabilities and chronic illnesses.
The lawsuit claims the organization solicited public donations through its website and fundraisers, with Frank using these funds for personal expenses such as rent, debt payments, medical bills, dating services, piano lessons, restaurants, groceries, clothes and utilities.
“Ohioans donated to help people in need – not to pay someone’s rent, piano lessons or dating services,” Yost said in a statement. “This is a blatant betrayal of public trust, and we’re holding her accountable.”
While Pawsible Angels was open, it used three checking accounts, and Frank was the only one who had access to them, according to the lawsuit.
The alleged financial mismanagement began to come to light on March 26, 2023, when a client made a complaint about Pawsible Angels on a social media business review platform, detailing issues with the nonprofit’s services, according to the filing. The review claimed the organization agreed to issue a partial refund, but did not issue it.
A Pawsible Angels’ board member then contacted Frank about the complaint, and on March 28, 2023, Frank sent an email to the board, announcing she was resigning from her position.
The board did not accept Frank’s resignation, pending a meeting to discuss "recent findings which apply to unethical practice, tax liens, pending reimbursements to clients and misrepresentation of certifications and memberships,” according to the lawsuit.
The board reportedly asked Frank to provide them with the organization’s financial records, to which she gave directions to locate the files, but did not provide log-in information that would have allowed the group to have access to the files. Therefore, board members could not access the documents. By April 4, 2023, all remaining members resigned from their board positions, the lawsuit says.
The legal filing does not provide further details on the client's complaint or the resignations of Frank and other board members.
In June 2023, a Toledo television station reported on complaints related to Pawsible Angels and Frank, the legal action states. In the news story, three anonymous members from the board expressed they did not know how the nonprofit’s funds were being used. The reporter who completed the story claimed Frank initially agreed to do an interview, but backed out.
Yost’s office is seeking restitution, civil penalties of up to $10,000 per violation and a permanent injunction barring Frank from operating or serving on the board of any charitable organization in Ohio.