On January 8, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit rejected a constitutional challenge brought by the Animal Legal Defense Fund, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and other groups to an Iowa statute that prohibits “agricultural facility fraud.” Animal Legal Defense Fund v. Reynolds, No. 22-1830 (8th Cir. Jan. 8, 2024). Statutes like this are often termed “ag gag laws” by their opponents. The district court had declared that the law violates the First Amendment, but the court of appeals reversed. Continue reading “Animal Rights Challenge to Iowa “Ag Gag Law” Fails in Eighth Circuit”
Nonhuman Rights Project Loses Another Habeas Case for Elephants
As we have reported previously (here, here, here, here), an animal rights group called the Nonhuman Rights Project (NhRP) has a history of filing fruitless cases to establish that animals should have the same basic rights as people. NhRP has used the common law and statutory writ of habeas corpus in an effort to “liberate” elephants and apes from various U.S. zoos and other facilities. None of these cases has succeeded. The most recent failure occurred this month in Colorado where a state court judge denied a habeas writ with respect to five African elephants residing at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoological Society. Nonhuman Rights Project, Inc. v. Cheyenne Mountain Zoological Society, et al., No. 23CV31236 (Colo. Dist Ct., El Paso County Dec. 3, 2023). Continue reading “Nonhuman Rights Project Loses Another Habeas Case for Elephants”
Recent Study Shows Some Marine Mammals Live Longer in Zoos than in the Wild
On October 18, 2023 an interesting study appeared in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences entitled Survival improvements of marine mammals in zoological institutions mirror historical advances in human longevity. The study, conducted by a 41-author team, led by Species360 and Dr. Morgane Tidiere of the University of Southern Denmark, noted that there is an “intense public debate” over marine mammals held in captivity based on “the assumption that survival in zoological institutions remains lower than the wild.” However, the study’s findings “contradict arguments of poor or lower survival in zoological institutions than in natural habitats.” Continue reading “Recent Study Shows Some Marine Mammals Live Longer in Zoos than in the Wild”
California Court Clarifies Los Angeles County’s Power to Euthanize Shelter Dogs
On September 18, 2023, the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, Division Five, issued a decision reversing a trial court’s dismissal of a case brought by two animal rescue groups challenging actions by the County of Los Angeles in euthanizing dogs rather than turning them over to animal rescue groups. Santa Paula Animal Rescue Center v. County of Los Angeles, No. B318954 (Cal. App. Sept. 18, 2023). The matter was remanded for further proceedings. Continue reading “California Court Clarifies Los Angeles County’s Power to Euthanize Shelter Dogs”
Ninth Circuit Tosses Grey Wolf Case on Standing Grounds
On June 14, 2023, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a lawsuit brought by Wildearth Guardians and other environment activist groups challenging the grazing permit decisions of the U.S. Forest Service in the Colville National Forest in Eastern Washington. The district court found that plaintiffs had no standing and the appellate court agreed. Wildearth Guardians v. U.S. Forest Service, No. 21-35936 (9th Cir. June 14, 2023). Continue reading “Ninth Circuit Tosses Grey Wolf Case on Standing Grounds”
APHIS Predicts Farm Animals Could Ultimately Be Subject to AWA Regulation
The Animal and Plant Inspection Health Service (APHIS) is the U.S. Department of Agriculture sub-agency charged with administering and enforcing the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA) , 7 U.S.C. § 2131, et seq. In connection with its “Strategic Plan” for 2023-27, APHIS issued a Strategic Foresight Report that “examines 10 societal, environmental, and technological trends that the Agency must be prepared to navigate. ” One such trend is “[e]volving perceptions around animal welfare and wildlife in human society.” Continue reading “APHIS Predicts Farm Animals Could Ultimately Be Subject to AWA Regulation”
UK Gene Editing Law on Plants and Animals Takes Effect
On March 23, 2023, royal assent was given to a statute passed by the British Parliament entitled the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act 2023. The new law aims to facilitate the utilization of precision breeding, which includes gene editing, by removing precision-bred plants and animals from the regulatory requirements applicable to genetically modified organisms (GMO’s). Continue reading “UK Gene Editing Law on Plants and Animals Takes Effect”
PETA Open Records Case Takes an Interesting Turn
On February 17, 2023, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed a preliminary injunction that had restrained the University of Washington from releasing records containing personal identifying information of current and former members of the University’s Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC). The records request had been submitted by animal rights organization, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). The appellate panel ruled that the district court erred in determining that the IACUC members had raised a serious issue that their First Amendment right of association would be infringed by release of the records, but did not reach the other arguments raised by the IACUC members which presumably will be addressed on remand. Sullivan v. University of Washington, No. 22-35338 (9th Cir. Feb. 17, 2023). Continue reading “PETA Open Records Case Takes an Interesting Turn”
PETA Hog-Catching Case Fails for Lack of Standing
On February 8, 2023, the Texas Fourth Court of Appeals affirmed a judgment dismissing a lawsuit that animal rights group, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), and a former PETA employee had brought seeking to enjoin the “Bandera Wrangler’s Hog Catch,” a feral hog-catching contest held annually in Bandera, Texas. PETA v. Bandera Wranglers, No. 04-21-00466-CV (Tex. Civ. App. — San Antonio 2023). The court ruled that neither plaintiff had standing to sue under Texas law. Continue reading “PETA Hog-Catching Case Fails for Lack of Standing”
With the Death Rate in PETA’s Animal Shelter, It Really Is Groundhog Day
Annually, animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) condemns Groundhog Day. This year, PETA called the exhibition of Punxsutawney Phil “a cruel form of speciesism, a human supremacist worldview.” Ironically, Groundhog Day is around the same time that PETA reports the euthanasia rates in its Norfolk, Virginia shelter to the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS). As a further irony, the theme of the movie “Groundhog Day,” in which the protagonist experiences the same thing over and over again, accurately characterizes PETA’s kill rate: just like last year and the year before and the year before that, PETA euthanized animals in 2022 at a rate that vastly exceeded the rates of facilities in Virginia reporting to the VDACS. Continue reading “With the Death Rate in PETA’s Animal Shelter, It Really Is Groundhog Day”