Main MenuFortune.comSubscribeSearchSign In© 2016 Time Inc. All rights reserved.Centerplate CEO Des Hague out after Internet backlashThe public spoke, and a company has taken action.Centerplate, a catering company that serves food at sports and entertainment venues such as Levi’s Stadium in San Francisco, BC Place in Vancouver, and Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, has parted ways with CEO Desmond Hague after a week of backlash from outspoken animal lovers on the Web.Hague, who had steered the Aramark challenger to big growth and many new accounts since he took over in 2009, was caught on camera in late July kicking a dog in a Vancouver elevator. The video surfaced in August, leading to a rash of media coverage of the abuse.In Fortune‘s original story on the incident, crisis-management consultant Steve Paskoff speculated that Centerplate would have to “do a thorough investigation. While we’re doing a thorough investigation, you put him on some type of suspension. You do this as fairly, rapidly, and efficiently as you can.” Centerplate did not take that tack at first, issuing a statement on August 25 that called the situation “a personal matter involving Des Hague,” distancing the company from his actions.The company subsequently issued two more statements, each one elevating in severity. Its second statement, sent out August 26, announced that Hague had agreed to undergo anger management counseling. Its third, on August 27, went further and declared that Hague had been put on probation within the company, had agreed to donate $100,000 of his own money to an animal charity, and would serve 1,000 hours of community service.For many, those measures were not enough. Just click the hashtag #DesHague on Twitter and you’ll see that vocal sports fans and animal lovers were calling for Hague’s firing; many of them also claimed they’d refuse to purchase food at stadiums serviced by Centerplate, which may have added to the pressure. A change.org petition asking Centerplate to fire Hague had accumulated more than 180,000 signatures by the end of the holiday weekend. As Paskoff asked in our initial story, “Is Centerplate going to be comfortable saying he represents our values, which state [on its website] that the company is ‘a positive force in our communities?’” In the end, the answer was no.In a statement this morning first sent to Fortune, the company said:Centerplate’s board of directors announced today that Chris Verros has been appointed to the role of acting president and chief executive officer, effective immediately, following the resignation of Desmond Hague from the company. The decision comes as a result of Hague’s personal misconduct involving the mistreatment of an animal in his care.“We want to reiterate that we do not condone nor would we ever overlook the abuse of animals,” said Joe O’Donnell, chairman of the board of directors for Centerplate. “Following an extended review of the