Andy Davis

aldavis@press-citizen.com

After an internal investigation into a claim from an Iowa City dog trainer that a Coralville Petco employee used a racial slur, the company on Monday said it has "determined there is no evidence to support her allegations."

In a statement sent via email by David Hallisey, vice president of corporate communications for Petco, the company said Chelsey Montgomery, 22, who is black, was asked to leave the 2515 Corridor Way store solely due to her "continued disruption of normal store operations and solicitation of our customers for her private business."

Montgomery, a former Petco employee who now operates Knallhart Kennels and Training Academy in Iowa City, posted a live video on Facebook on Wednesday explaining that she went to the store around 8 p.m. to train her dog and was immediately approached by a female employee who asked her to leave.

"She approached me and said I need to get out, and I said, 'Excuse me?' " Montgomery told the Press-Citizen on Thursday. "She said, 'Your kind is not welcome here,' and asked me to leave again" before using a racial slur, she said.

Montgomery declined to leave, she said, and the employee called police to remove her from the store.

"At Petco, we take claims of discrimination very seriously and do not tolerate unlawful discrimination or harassment in any way, shape or form. The recent situation in our Coralville, Ia., store, last week is no different," the company said in its statement Monday, later adding, "We will continue to welcome dog trainers in our stores as long as they don't disrupt our own classes or other guests."

PREVIOUSLY: Woman says Coralville Petco employee used racial slur, asked her to leave store

Coralville Police Chief Shane Kron last week said Coralville officers responded to a call from a Petco employee who wanted "a female removed that is soliciting her services" and that Montgomery was given a trespass warning. Officers had a brief interaction with Montgomery, Kron had said, and explained that she needed to leave.

Federal civil rights law prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin. But while officers were at the store, Kron said, Montgomery did not mention the slur or make any allegations about being racially targeted.

Reached by phone Monday, Montgomery said she has spoken with representatives from Petco's corporate offices about the incident and is now working with a third party, but declined to comment further.

Attorneys Abigail Brown and Persephone Eglaine, lawyers at the Leff Law Firm, located in downtown Iowa City, released a statement Tuesday on Montgomery's behalf. Attorneys in the statement said Montgomery "is recovering from this traumatic and emotional event of discrimination at the Coralville, Iowa Petco" last week and "approached our firm to understand her rights and avenues of recourse with regard to this discrimination."

"We are pleased to hear that Petco takes these acts of discrimination seriously and have begun the process of finding the truth in this matter by conducting an internal investigation," attorneys said in the statement, adding that the company should seek witnesses of the discrimination or store surveillance video. "Chelsey has never disrupted the normal store operations or solicited Petco’s customers while on Petco premises, and there is no evidence to suggest to the contrary."

They attorneys said they have reached out to Petco's corporate office but have not received a response.

Last week, Montgomery said she routinely brings dogs to the Coralville store for training and had called the store's corporate office before entering the store Wednesday to make sure she could train her dog there.

By Tuesday evening, Montgomery's Facebook live video had been shared over 3,200 times and viewed about 147,000 times.

Full statement from Petco

"At Petco, we take claims of discrimination very seriously and do not tolerate unlawful discrimination or harassment in any way, shape or form. The recent situation in our Coralville, IA, store, last week is no different.

We have completed our internal investigation regarding the claims recently made on social media and to the press by Chelsey Montgomery, a former Petco employee and dog trainer who frequents our store, and have determined there is no evidence to support her allegations. The only reason she was asked to leave was due to her continued disruption of normal store operations and solicitation of our customers for her private business.

As a service to pet parents in our local communities, we will continue to welcome dog trainers in our stores as long as they don't disrupt our own classes or other guests."

Full statement from attorneys representing Chelsey Montgomery

"Chelsey Montgomery is recovering from this traumatic and emotional event of discrimination at the Coralville, Iowa Petco on Wednesday, April 5, 2017. She has approached our firm to understand her rights and avenues of recourse with regard to this discrimination. We look forward to working with her to bring her justice and emotional peace.

We are pleased to hear that Petco takes these acts of discrimination seriously and have begun the process of finding the truth in this matter by conducting an internal investigation. We encourage Petco to reach out to other witnesses to the discrimination and determine if there are any recordings of the event, such as by the store’s own surveillance system. Chelsey has never disrupted the normal store operations or solicited Petco’s customers while on Petco premises, and there is no evidence to suggest to the contrary. At this time, we have reached out to corporate Petco but have not yet received a response.

Chelsey is happy to hear that independent dog trainers are allowed in the store, and she is hopeful that an individual will not be prevented from entering the property on the basis of his or her race again."

Reach Andy Davis at 319-887-5404 or at aldavis@press-citizen.com, and follow him on Twitter as @BylineAndyDavis.