Judge to Decide Whether Animal Rescuer Can Use Necessity Defense

Contact: Cassie King, DxE, (510) 507-8075, cassie@directactioneverywhere.com



Santa Rosa, CA - Tomorrow, Friday, June 13th, Sonoma County Judge Kenneth Gnoss will decide whether to allow the necessity defense in the high-profile trial of Zoe Rosenberg . Ms. Rosenberg faces felony conspiracy, misdemeanor trespass, and up to five years in prison for rescuing four ailing chickens from Perdue’s Petaluma Poultry slaughterhouse in June 2023.

The necessity defense permits an individual to take actions that would ordinarily be criminal in order to prevent a “significant evil” from occurring. The defense argues that cruelty to animals and dangers to public health both qualify as significant evils, and that Ms. Rosenberg should be permitted to present evidence that her alleged trespass was justified under the circumstances.

What: Hearing on defense’s motion to present a necessity defense in trial of woman who rescued chickens from a Perdue slaughterhouse in Petaluma

When: Court begins 11:00 AM tomorrow, Friday, June 13th. Animal rights activists will gather outside the courthouse at 10:30 AM. The hearing is expected to last 3 hours.

Where: Sonoma County Courthouse, Courtroom 9, 600 Administration Drive, Santa Rosa

Who: Zoe Rosenberg is represented by Chris Carraway, Staff Attorney at the Animal Activist Legal Defense Project . In 2023, Carraway successfully represented another animal rescuer who was acquitted of theft charges for rescuing a bird from a slaughter truck in Merced County.

Petaluma Poultry is a “free range” and partially “organic” subsidiary of Perdue Farms, the fourth largest poultry producer in the United States. It supplies to major grocery chains including Trader Joe’s. For years, Ms. Rosenberg and other activists with Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) have reported to authorities unlawful animal cruelty at Petaluma Poultry and other county factory farms––as Ms. Rosenberg was doing when she was arrested. DxE says the District Attorney should prosecute animal cruelty and documented public health risks at Petaluma Poultry, rather than targeting a whistleblower who has helped expose these issues. A report from The Press Democrat found that the Petaluma Poultry slaughterhouse has four times the national average rate of salmonella and campylobacter, two pathogens that cause illness in humans.

Investigators with Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) enter farms, slaughterhouses, and other facilities to document abuses and rescue sick and injured animals. DxE’s investigatory work has been featured in The New York Times,WIRED, and Vox . DxE activists have been subjected to FBI raids and felony prosecutions for their investigative work. In 2022, DxE activists won the first-ever acquittal in an open rescue case. Visit DxE on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and at directactioneverywhere.com.

The Animal Activist Legal Defense Project at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law works to empower and defend animal advocates through activist defense, affirmative litigation, and training law students to join and transform the field of Animal Law. Learn more at AALDP.com follow us at @AALDP_DU on Twitter/X, Instagram , and @AALDP-DU on Bluesky

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