Felony charges brought against 47 animal rights activists after Ridglan Farms raid

Dozens of animal rights activists involved in a raid on a Dane County animal breeding facility have been charged with burglary, property damage and theft — felony charges which could lead to years in prison and thousands of dollars in fines.

In all, 47 people were charged in connection with the March 15 action at Ridglan Farms in Blue Mounds, in which activists broke into the facility and took 22 beagles who had been bred for biomedical research.

In the detailed, 47-page complaint, prosecutors outline the alleged individual roles that activists played, from cutting fences at the facility to driving vans to assist in the scheme, to carrying dogs out to posting about the day’s events on social media.

While some of the allegations refer to a later raid on the facility that took place in April — with prosecutors arguing that some activists were also collecting intelligence to use in future actions — this round of charges is tied to the March event.

The charges were filed late on Friday at the start of a holiday weekend, and signed by Dane County Assistant District Attorney Timothy J. Helmberger and Dane County Deputy Sheriff Alyssa Moehrke.

In an interview with WPR, Chris Carraway, an attorney with the Animal Activist Legal Defense Project at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, accused Dane County law enforcement of turning a blind eye to the suffering of animals at Ridglan Farms

“Dane County is spending so much of taxpayers’ money to go after these activists for doing what was right, when, if they had done a small percentage of the effort they’re doing now, none of this would have happened,” he said.

Carraway also criticized the timing of when the charges were filed, calling it “cowardly.”

Neither Dane County Sheriff Kalvin Barrett and Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne responded to WPR’s requests for comment.

The burglary charges could carry up to 12 years in prison. Felony property damage could carry more than three. The theft charges could carry between five and 10 years. Some defendants have been charged with more than one crime.

Attention on Ridglan Farms for months

In October, following an investigation into claims of animal cruelty, Ridglan Farms announced that it would close its animal breeding operations. As part of a settlement, Ridglan Farms faced no fines or fees, and was given a deadline of July 1, 2026, to offload its remaining beagles — a quantity estimated at about 2,500 at the time of the settlement — or keep them for research purposes, but not to sell.

For months, activists called for the dogs to be adopted out. Earlier this spring, they took matters into their own hands.

After the March raid, activists attempted what they described as a rescue mission for the remaining dogs. Activists publicized the raid in advance, and videoed themselves rushing the facilities. Hundreds of them were met with tear gas, and Barrett described their actions as “not a peaceful protest” on social media. No dogs were removed during that event.

Instead, groups have negotiated the remaining dogs’ removal. In April, about 1,500 were purchased by animal rescue groups, to be adopted out. Last month, another animal welfare group said it had struck a deal to adopt out those that remained.  

Last week’s charges are not the first criminal charges to be brought against activists during this multi-month saga. Four people were previously charged as being leaders in the March raid. They face a jury trial in January.