PETA Statement on Idaho’s Appeal of ‘Ag-Gag’ Law Defeat

For Immediate Release:
December 14, 2015

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

PETA Foundation General Counsel Jeff Kerr released the following statement regarding Idaho’s appeal of the August 3 ruling that struck down the state’s “ag-gag” law, which had criminalized eyewitness investigations of the meat industry:

The district court agreed with PETA that it’s unconstitutional to criminalize free speech, and we fully expect that the appellate court will agree as well and uphold this ruling. All Americans have a First Amendment right to expose criminal wrongdoing, including cruelty to animals, just as the public has a right to know that meat-industry workers are kicking pigs in the head, stomping on chickens, and throwing turkeys around like footballs. The right to free speech must prevail here, just as it has prevailed in Florida, Illinois, Tennessee, and the 17 other states where “ag-gag” bills have been roundly defeated.

PETA’s motto is that “animals are not ours to eat, wear, experiment on, use for entertainment, or abuse in any other way,” and we routinely work with law-enforcement officials in our exposés of cruelty to animals.