An animal rights activist and UC Berkeley student were charged Wednesday after removing four chickens from a Sona County playground — but the farm’s owners say it was a routine theft.
In a trial closely watched by the poultry industry and animal rights groups, Zoe Rosenberg, 23, was found guilty of conspiracy, two misdemeanor counts of infractions and one count of vehicular interference.
He faces a possible sentence of five years. But he urged animal rights supporters not to let his conviction get in the way of their revival.
“Prosecutors hope this will stop people from talking about the animals, to prevent people from rescuing them,” Roserberg said in an Instagram video after the verdict was read. “Please don’t give in. We will continue, no matter what, until all the animals are safe and happy.”
Industry authorities are opposed to activist groups associated with Rosenberg’s tortured workers and chicken companies, trying to draw attention to their cause and use illegal action in the process.
According to prosecutors, Rosenberg planned for weeks to break into farms in Pedue Petaluma Poullte and remove chickens involved in shoes, workers’ uniforms, available devices, a safe house. ”
“The judge’s decision makes it clear: personal beliefs do not justify breaking the law,” said Herb Frerichs, Petaluma poultry general counsel, in a statement. “This type of behavior has no place in any law-abiding society.”
Sonoma County prosecutors say Roserberg led the direct action outreach division, or DNE, an animal rights group that, according to its website, “refused[s] It is the speciesism that causes the mass torture and killing of non-animals. “
This group used “salvation” to draw attention to their cause and took similar cases to court.
In a statement, Sosoma County Dist. Atty. Carla Rodriguez criticized the group’s tactics, saying activists need to be held accountable when they “cross that line.”
“Unfortunately, some activist groups continue to show willful disregard for the law, believing that their own causes justify criminal behavior,” the statement said. “They tried to use the criminal system itself as a platform to get attention and continue their movement. The court system is there to uphold justice – not to serve as a platform for self-promotion or illegal behavior.”
Rosenberg, in his testimony, confirmed that he helped the content boats of the public media to suppress the Dxe public campaign against the chicken farm.
He wants to arrest him for his crime, DNE said in a statement.
The agency said Rosenberg’s attorneys were not allowed to present a “need to defend,” in which attorneys would admit evidence that the elder Rosenberg could not have prevented an injury that was not legally necessary to prevent the injury.
The group also pointed out that lawyers are prohibited from presenting evidence of animal cruelty during the trial.
“These charges carry a sentence of up to 5 years in prison,” the statement said. “At the same time, Petaluma poultry farms are facing the consequences of leaving sick animals to die or turning on healthy animals.”
Industry authorities have criticized DNE’s tactics. In a certain statement, the confirmation called the organization “a group of painful activists.”
On November 30, 2023, DNE COUMENDER Wayne Hsiung was sentenced to 90 days in jail after he and others from the gang took large numbers of chickens and ducks from farms in Petaluma. He was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit adultery and two misdemeanor counts of criminal mischief, according to court records.
“For years, DNE has victimized farm families and workers, stolen from private property and stolen from local businesses,” said Wedna Ghirardelli, executive director of the Sosoma County Farm Bureau, in a statement. “Our community has always rejected their grandiose tactics, and this decision reinforces that.”
Rosenberg, in his Instagram post, said the judge ordered him to wear a suit until he was heard.
