Right to Rescue

Featured Case

Rescuing Phoebe and Celia from Whole Foods' Goat Graveyard

Four activists were just charged with felony grand theft, felony conspiracy, and trespass for openly rescuing two sick, baby goats from the largest goat milk producer in the U.S., Meyenberg, which supplies to Whole Foods and other major retailers. The rescue followed a months-long investigation that found dozens of dead mother and baby goats were regularly being dumped into an illegal dead pile on the property. Rescuers named the goats Phoebe and Celia and got them veterinary care for their respiratory infections and conjunctivitis. Now, they are facing up to 6.5 years in prison for saving these goats.

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Dear District Attorney Hacker,

I urge you to prosecute animal cruelty, not animal rescue. National polls consistently show overwhelming public support for strong legal protection for animals. Yet, countless investigations have shown that animal-using industries routinely violate animal welfare laws with no repercussions. It is time for a change.

Your office should be working with whistleblowers and rescuers to protect animals from abuse. Prosecuting these good samaritans who expose animal mistreatment is wildly out of line with the values of the public. A 2015 Gallup poll¹ found that a third of Americans believe “animals deserve the exact same rights as people to be free from harm and exploitation,” a 2022 YouGov poll² found that nearly half of Americans believe that animal cruelty laws in the U.S. are not strict enough, and a 2024 poll by Positive Sum Strategies³ found that 68% of Americans believe it should not be a crime to take an animal out of an environment where they are being mistreated.

The same sentiments are evidenced by two recent acquittals of animal rescuers. In October 2022, a Utah jury issued a groundbreaking “not guilty” verdict⁴ for two DxE investigators who openly rescued sick piglets from a Smithfield Foods factory pig farm. In March 2023, a California jury acquitted⁵ two more DxE investigators of theft charges for rescuing two sick chickens from a slaughter truck.

In many situations, the law already clearly asserts that rescuing an animal is not a crime. 14 US states have passed “right to rescue” laws to provide civil or criminal protection for people who rescue distressed animals from motor vehicles. Moreover, the common law doctrine of legal necessity provides that it is a defense to a crime if the act was necessary to prevent some greater harm. Law professors, including property law expert Professor Kristen Stilt at Harvard, have opined⁶ that the necessity defense applies to open rescues at commercial animal operations.

Prominent journalists, organizations, and cities have also chimed in to support the right to rescue, including in this New York Times article⁷ headlined “Rescuing Farmed Animals from Cruelty Should be Legal.”

Your office’s resources could be much better spent investigating and stopping crimes against animals. It is essential to address the root cause of the problem rather than targeting those attempting to bring attention to it. All animals deserve to be rescued from situations of distress and exploitation.

Sincerely,

[Your name]

References:
1. https://news.gallup.com/poll/183275/say-animals-rights-people.aspx
2. https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/42696-american-support-strengthening-laws-animal-cruelty
3. https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/eg07dfxhjq2n8vg6iejde/Positive-Sum-Strategies.pdf
4. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/08/science/animals-rights-piglets-smithfield.html
5. https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/23647682/factory-farming-dxe-criminal-trial-rescue
6. https://animal.law.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/DxE-Amicus-Brief.pdf
7. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/14/opinion/foster-farms-chicken-slaughterhouse-animal-cruelty.html

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About the Right to Rescue

14 US states have laws that allow the rescue of dogs from hot cars, and Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) is leading a campaign to extend these laws to apply to animals of any species in need of rescue, including in factory farms and animal experimentation facilities. The Right to Rescue campaign seeks to build support for animal rescue and ultimately, to establish a legal right to rescue animals from distress and exploitation. This would open the door to a new view of animals under the law - as people deserving of rights, rather than "property.”

Recent Updates

Sonoma County, CaliforniaApr. 30, 2026
VICTORY: The California Court of Appeals just overturned Wayne Hsiung’s felony conviction for his role in rescuing 37 abused hens from Sunrise Farms. They also overturned his misdemeanor trespass conviction for his role in the rescue of 32 sick ducklings from Reichardt Duck Farm. The Court ruled that Wayne should have been allowed to argue that he believed his actions were legal under the necessity defense. Further, the Court wrote that “Neither this court nor the California Supreme Court has ruled that the necessity defense applies exclusively to situations involving physical harm to a human,” validating that individuals could have the right to violate laws in order to rescue animals from extreme harm. The Court did not overturn his misdemeanor trespass conviction for his actions at Sunrise Farms or make a clear ruling affirming that the necessity defense actively does apply to nonhuman animals. Consequently, Wayne will be appealing to the California Supreme Court on this issue. Nevertheless, this is a major step forward towards establishing the Right to Rescue and positioning animals as persons under the law. Thank you to the Animal Activist Legal Defense Project for leading the effort on this appeal. Read some of the press coverage here.

Dane County, WisconsinApr. 18, 2026
Today, over 1,000 people converged at Ridglan Farms to nonviolently attempt to save the dogs still trapped inside. Dane County Sheriffs responded with tear gas, pepper spray, rubber bullets, and stinger grenades. They knocked peaceful activists to the ground and brutalized them. This police brutality sparked widespread media attention and is generating even more public support to free the dogs.

Kings County, CaliforniaMarch 26, 2026
NEW CASE: Four animal rescuers have just been charged with felonies for rescuing two baby goats, Phoebe and Celia, who were sick with respiratory infections on a Whole Foods-supplying goat dairy. The 9,000-goat operation produces milk for the nation’s largest goat milk brand, Meyenberg. Carla, Sally, Joe, and Taj are charged with felony grand theft, felony conspiracy, and trespass. Read more here.

Dane County, WisconsinMarch 15, 2026
A coalition of activists entered Ridglan Farms today and openly rescued 22 dogs from a life of experimentation. 8 others were seized by Dane County Sheriff’s deputies after being rescued. Last year, Ridglan agreed to shut down its breeding operation by July 1, 2026 to avoid felony animal cruelty charges. But this delay has left thousands of dogs inside the facility still subject to Ridglan’s abuse and destined to be sold to labs across the country. The government is failing these animals. So ordinary people are taking action themselves.

Sonoma County, CaliforniaDec. 24, 2025
Zoe was released from jail early today, after being approved to spend the last 60 days of her 90-day sentence on house arrest rather than in jail and due to California's half-time credits for good behavior cutting her 30 days in half. Read more in the SF Chronicle.

Sonoma County, CaliforniaDec. 10, 2025
Zoe Rosenberg surrendered herself at the jail tonight to begin her sentence. Watch local TV coverage here.

Sonoma County, CaliforniaDec. 3, 2025
Zoe Rosenberg was sentenced to 90 days in custody for saving four chickens from Perdue’s Petaluma Poultry slaughterhouse. Zoe spoke at her sentencing hearing and did not express remorse for saving them. Rather, she stated, “I am filled with remorse for every animal I have failed to save."

Sonoma County, CaliforniaOct. 29, 2025
Animal rescuer Zoe Rosenberg was just found guilty of felony conspiracy and three misdemeanors for her rescue of four chickens from Perdue's Petaluma Poultry slaughterhouse. Her sentencing hearing is Dec. 3rd. She faces a potential sentence of 4.5 years in jail. Meanwhile, Petaluma Poultry faces no consequences for leaving sick animals to die or scalding animals alive. After the verdict was read, prosecutor Matt Hobson asked for Zoe to be immediately remanded into custody, dismissing her life-threatening medical issues. Judge Gnoss chose not to remand Zoe into custody but he ordered that she be placed back on a GPS ankle monitor to ensure that she does not return to Petaluma Poultry. Zoe and her legal team will appeal this conviction, including the court’s refusal to allow her to present a necessity defense and severe restrictions on what animal cruelty evidence the jury was allowed to see.

Dane County, WisconsinOct. 28, 2025
VICTORY: Ridglan Farms, the second largest breeder of dogs for experimentation in the U.S., is shutting down its breeding operation! After charges were dropped against DxE activists who rescued three beagles from Ridglan's cruelty, activists and attorneys kept the pressure on and the court case completely flipped, with Ridglan facing prosecution. In a deal to avoid a felony for animal cruelty, Ridglan announced that it will shut down its breeding operation by July 1, 2026. This means thousands of dogs will be spared from cruelty. You can read more in the press here, and you can share this victory on social media here. Enormous thanks to our allies at the Animal Activist Legal Defense Project, Dane4Dogs, Alliance for Animals Wisconsin, The Simple Heart, and The Marty Project for their tireless work to make this happen.

Read more +

Featured Case

Rescuing Phoebe and Celia from Whole Foods' Goat Graveyard

Contact the District Attorney

About the Right to Rescue

Recent Updates

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