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For Rapid Launch:
October 26, 2022
Contact:
Nicole Meyer 202-483-7382
Winchester, Va. – PETA has obtained current U.S. Division of Agriculture studies revealing two violations of legislation at Light Harvest exterior Winchester, Virginia, by which a pig and a cow remained acutely aware after being shot within the head. In response, the group despatched a letter at this time to Frederick County Commonwealth’s Lawyer Ross Spicer calling on him to analyze and file acceptable prison prices in opposition to these accountable.
In keeping with the studies, on October 7 a employee shot a pig within the head with a rifle however the animal remained standing and crying out. The employee then shot the animal once more earlier than the plant supervisor provided a shotgun, which was used to shoot the pig two extra instances. On April 15, a cow additionally remained standing after a employee shot her within the head.
“Regardless of this slaughterhouse’s title, these studies doc gradual and agonizing deaths that have been something however light,” says PETA Vice President of Proof Evaluation Daniel Paden. “PETA is asking for an investigation on behalf of those animals and is urging everybody to assist forestall extra animals from struggling in slaughterhouses by going vegan.”
PETA—whose motto reads, partially, that “animals will not be ours to eat” and which opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview—factors out that pigs, cows, sheep, chickens, and different animals really feel ache and worry and worth their lives, simply as people do. The group is pursuing prices underneath state legislation as a result of federal officers haven’t prosecuted any inspected slaughterhouses for acts of abuse since a minimum of 2007.
For extra data on PETA’s investigative newsgathering and reporting, go to PETA.org or observe the group on Twitter, Fb, or Instagram.
PETA’s letter to Spicer follows.
October 26, 2022
The Honorable Ross Spicer
Frederick County Commonwealth’s Lawyer
Expensive Mr. Spicer:
I hope this letter finds you effectively. I wish to request that your workplace (and the correct native law-enforcement company, as you deem acceptable) examine and file appropriate prison prices in opposition to the employees answerable for repeatedly taking pictures acutely aware animals within the head on two current events on the Light Harvest slaughterhouse situated at 468 White Corridor Rd. exterior Winchester. The U.S. Division of Agriculture’s Meals Security and Inspection Service (FSIS) documented the incidents within the connected studies, which state the next:
- October 7: “[A] sow was loaded into the knock field and an worker tried to stun the sow utilizing a .22 Magnum rifle. The stun try was unsuccessful as evidenced by the sow remaining standing and vocalizing briefly. The worker instantly utilized a second stun try utilizing the identical .22 magnum rifle, however the sow remained standing within the knock field. The worker known as for the Plant Supervisor, who was in a room adjoining to the kill flooring, and requested help. The Plant Supervisor retrieved a .410 shotgun from a gun cupboard and introduced it to the worker. The worker then shot the sow utilizing the .410 shotgun, however the sow remained standing and vocalizing barely. The worker then utilized a right away 2nd shot utilizing the .410 shotgun (4th general stun try), which rendered the sow unconscious.”[1]
- April 15: “Whereas beautiful a beef (Steer) with a Jarvis Product Corp .25S caliber captive stun bolt within the knock field space, the institution had a Mis-stun. On the primary shot, the animal jerked [his] head to the aspect and the worker didn’t make an efficient stun. The institution instantly positioned an efficient second shot to the animal rendering [him] unconscious.”[2]
This conduct seems to violate Va. Code § 3.2-6570. Importantly, FSIS’ motion carries no prison or civil penalties and doesn’t preempt prison legal responsibility underneath state legislation for slaughterhouse staff who perpetrate acts of cruelty to animals.[3] Provided that the FSIS hasn’t initiated a prison prosecution of a licensed slaughterhouse for inhumane dealing with since a minimum of 2007, prices underneath state legislation are these victims’ solely likelihood at a measure of justice.
Please tell us what we would do to help you. Thanks in your consideration and for the tough work that you simply do.
Sincerely,
Colin Henstock
Investigations Venture Supervisor
[1]FSIS District 80 Supervisor Todd Furey, Discover of Suspension, Light Harvest (October 7, 2022) https://www.fsis.usda.gov/websites/default/recordsdata/media_file/paperwork/M34103-NOS-10072022.pdf. Final accessed October 21, 2022.
[2]FSIS, Noncompliance Document, Light Harvest (April 15, 2022), https://www.peta.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/2022-04-15-noncompliance-record.pdf.
[3]See Nat’l. Meat Assoc. v. Harris, 132 S. Ct. 965, 974 n.10 (2012) (“States could precise civil or prison penalties for animal cruelty or different conduct that additionally violates the [Federal Meat
Inspection Act (FMIA)]. See [21 U.S.C.] §678; cf. Bates v. Dow Agrosciences, LLC, 544 U.S. 431, 447 (2005), holding {that a} preemption clause barring state legal guidelines ‘along with or completely different’ from a federal Act doesn’t intrude with an ‘equal’ state provision. Though the FMIA preempts a lot state legislation involving slaughterhouses, it thus leaves some room for the States to manage.”).
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