The Animal Law Podcast is proud to partner with The Brooks Institute for Animal Rights Law and Policy, Inc., a US-based national independent think tank pursuing a paradigm shift in human responsibility towards, and value of, non-human animals by advancing animal law, animal policy, and related interdisciplinary studies. HWIk@(z2$A$] Cb'NK~}q]T[sd&GgNh#f7i8a^i".Gg8[gg"i5mrK|T,-TZeOqHf%!%D7n|%H[2tAY(Q91,E%-ODBo Jy1nyIV]BP?gT^%JxV4W^s~ 3D#5+N}jggF|Nl subject to any redactions otherwise appropriate under FOIA.). Who We Are Before law school, Will worked a lengthy corporate career and in his free time, helped run several non-profits focused on a variety of animal issues. The tragedy here is that our current methods of raising birds for food production, in enormous sheds with millions of stressed, nearly genetically identical birds in close proximity to one another, has resulted in a situation where outbreaks of diseases like HPAI are nearly inevitable and few options exist for humanely killing infected birds, Reyes-Illg, the Animal Welfare Institute veterinary adviser, wrote to The Intercept. Animal Law Podcast #62: The Case of Vegan Butter. I think the AVMA looked to [the NC State] studies and others as some aspect of legitimacy. After a year and a half of chipping away at this book, its finally done. We appreciate the FDA's swift action . ~e\:Q"i(q\,Y=KO0TNlyag#l>8`G#ou_B'lK Get Involved ir(#x~^ [6] See 29 Del. Will Lowrey, Richmond, VA, for appellant. will lowrey animal outlook. Animal Outlooks deputy director of investigations, Erin Wing, spent three months at the farm, secretly videoing what appears to be a range of animal cruelty violations including workers burning calves horns off without any apparent pain relief. Cheryl is the Executive Director of Animal Outlook. Will Lowrey is Legal Counsel for Animal Outlook. Animal Outlook's attempts to prosecute a similar cruelty case at the Californian Dick Van Dam dairy remains stalled after the local sheriff's department declined to recommend criminal charges. Animal Outlook explains: Animal Outlook recently obtained public records from experiments conducted by North Carolina State University (NCSU) researchers in 2016. The court dismissed Animal Outlooks complaint, concluding the District Attorney properly found there was insufficient evidence to prosecute Martin Farms. [10] The Chief of Community Relations attests that Incident Action Plans sometimes contain privileged veterinary advice specific to depopulation methods. Chickens infected with respiratory diseases such as avian influenza also suffer shortness of breath and other painful symptoms and the suffering continues to happen for several days until death occurs. BOWES, J., OLSON, J., and KING, J. By . Vegan for 19 years, she lives in New York City with her cat, Nola, whom she rescued after Hurricane Katrina. a merciless method of exterminating millions of helpless birds on factory These are birds in extreme distress, said Sherstin Rosenberg, a veterinarian who has cared for thousands of chickens and other poultry birds at an animal sanctuary in California, after reviewing the NC State footage. Lisa is a public interest attorney who works to advocate for vulnerable and underrepresented people and animals. C. 3300-4.1 states that veterinarians must protect the personal privacy of patients and clients by not willfully revealing communications regarding the diagnosis and treatment of an animal. The DDA then invokes a new rationale the investigatory files exemption which exempts investigatory files compiled for civil or criminal law-enforcement purposes.[3] The DDA claims that the investigatory files exemption applies to these records; both USDA staff and the State Veterinarian and Deputy State Veterinarian assist with investigating and minimizing the spread of the avian influenza. Find Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and TikTok profiles, images and more on IDCrawl - free people search website. 16 Jun June 16, 2022. will lowrey animal outlook. On this weeks podcast I will be talking to Will Lowrey of Animal Outlook about a case that really has everyone in the animal law community talking. Chief Deputy Attorney General, cc: Adria B. Martinelli, Deputy Attorney General Undercover Investigations Our brave investigators are shining a bright light on the hidden horrors forced upon billions of farmed animals. Our mission: We're strategically challenging animal agribusiness through undercover investigations, legal advocacy, corporate and food system reform, and disseminating information about the many harms of animal agriculture, empowering everyone to choose vegan. So rapid depopulation is vital, Shah wrote in an email to The Intercept. [14] Del. "The sheriff's decision in California, the 'no' [to prosecution], was a far more significant impediment," said Lowrey. Our own Will Lowrey and Cheryl Leahy recently sat down for a wide ranging interview with Biodiversity Magazine. Transparency " The Co ur t's ruling s ends a clear mess age that animals us ed in agriculture are wor thy of protec tion." Erin Wing, Animal Outlook's deputy direc tor of investigations who documented the abus e while wor king A hen, hooked up to electrodes, stands alone in a glass cage. Thanks in part to the NC State researchers work, the use of ventilation shutdown at U.S. factory farms is increasing in several states. Before law school, Will worked a lengthy corporate career and, in his free time, helped run several non-profits focused on a variety of animal issues. In , Will Lowrey December 11, 2020 Animals, Investigations, News 2 Comments, March 4, 2021 update: Following an FDA inspection prompted by our complaint, Bravo Packing, Inc. hasrecalledboth its Performance Dog and its Ground Beef frozen raw pet foods due to possible contamination with Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes. In an email to Lowrey, USDA spokesperson Lyndsay Cole confirmed these chickens were killed with a combination of foam (a method that suffocates birds under a blanket of foam) and VSD. congrats!! American Veterinary Medical Association Our mission is to change the world for animals. 0 Candidate, working towards an impactful career in the public interest & environmental law space. The hens took more than 91 minutes to die from ventilation shutdown alone, 54 minutes to die from VSD with supplemental heat, and 11.5 minutes to die from VSD with carbon dioxide, according to a 2017 final report based on the research that was submitted to the U.S. Poultry and Egg Association. LinkedIn: https://lnkd.in/ePBGHH3u Bowes observed the lower court improperly hand-picked few of the alleged instances of abuse in reviewing the evidence. The company or organization that William Craig Lowrey serves is Animal Outlook.The office address is Po Box 9773, Washington, DC 20016-9773, United States of America. Op. Mar 2011 - Present12 years 2 months. https://lnkd.in/eK5chEFp, This was one of my absolute favorite law school experiences and I encourage any current law students interested in animal law to consider competing: https://lnkd.in/g3hz3s29, Animal Outlook is still accepting applications for our Fall 2022 Legal Advocacy internship. )\3y:3}W AnYhJ 115 0 obj <>/Filter/FlateDecode/ID[<23A2B528A0FCC944806250708C29DD96>]/Index[97 46]/Info 96 0 R/Length 96/Prev 315580/Root 98 0 R/Size 143/Type/XRef/W[1 3 1]>>stream The DDA Chief of Community Relations attests that [f]arm owners may be indemnified by the USDA for the value of their losses if they were not found to be negligent in addressing the outbreak and minimizing spread.[4] She further attests that State veterinarians provide advice to the farm owners regarding the method to depopulate, which is reflected in the Appraisal and Indemnity Request Form, completed jointly by the State veterinarian and the USDA or state case manager, and premises owner, and details the depopulation method and the operational reasons for selecting the method. No matter how much an investigator might try to prepare you never know what to expect. OPINION BY BOWES, J.: Animal Outlook ("AO") appeals from the order that dismissed its petition for review of the disapproval of the Franklin County District Attorney's Office ("DA") of multiple private criminal complaints. The dying birds likely suffer enormously as they struggle to breathe, develop diarrhea, and become paralyzed or otherwise neurologically compromised, Gwendolen Reyes-Illg, a veterinary adviser to the Animal Welfare Institute, told The Intercept in an email. Cities & Towns However unpleasant, it should be a primary goal that depopulation (euthanasia) methods strive to meet these standards within the context of the extreme need scale in which VSD would be used.. Delaware Marketplace You can update your choices at any time in your settings. Cheryl received a J.D. On this week's podcast I will be talking to Will Lowrey of Animal Outlook about a case that really has everyone in the animal law community talking. Business First Steps, Phone Directory Well, they said a lot more than that and much of it implicates one of the most nefarious legal tricks of the trade that the industry has used to avoid consequences for their illegal treatment of animals, the customary or normal farming practices exemption. Legal Counsel, Animal Outlook . Since then, Ive been working to start a new organization focused on challenging unlawful conduct in animal agriculture and research. Previous experience includes stints with Dow Jones and Agence France Presse (AFP). News. In Minnesota, more than 1.7 million birds, mostly turkeys, have been or will soon be depopulated since the states first avian flu case on March 25, with an increasing number killed using VSD+ compared to the 2015 bird flu, according to state veterinarian Beth Thompson. Atty Gen. 21-IB15, 2021 WL 3160273, at *6 (July 2, 2021) (We believe that the courts in Delaware would not define a public record under FOIA to include a working draft which the author is still revising prior to presentation to a public body, and . Will also supports Animal Outlooks investigations work. in a slow, agonizing death by suffocation and heatstroke for millions of particularly inhumane method of killing carries industry weight. Will Lowrey - Animal Outlook Teleconference Piper Hoffman - Animal Outlook . Since February, 40 million birds have died this horrible A 2021 letter from the Animal Welfare Institute to the AVMA criticizes the NC State report on numerous scientific grounds and states that it was so poorly written and/or edited that it was difficult at times to discern what the author was attempting to communicate. The study uses something called heat shock protein 70 as a measure of stress in the hens, which both the Animal Welfare Institute and Sherstin Rosenberg said is not a legitimate measure of the animals welfare. C. 10002(o)(17) exempting records implicating certain security concerns. As Will stated, [t]he Courts ruling sends a clear message that animals used in agriculture are worthy of protection. Wills resilience and determination to seek justice on behalf of farmed animals is inspiring. Photo of UPC sanctuary hens by Davida G. Breier. (Picture of Skittles, a resident of Porchlight Animal Sanctuary in Virginia, just for good measure). C. 10001-10007 (FOIA) in connection with your request for records. These scenes, which took place at North Carolina State University, were documented in 10 hours of video footage recently obtained via public records requests by the organization Animal Outlook and shared with The Intercept. 1x$Ah5sS]**T"$IQDrCeHPe]ai$b.=WuiY6oz~zaq>"|[VE:{vWNcQZbE0;t\WYh`w^wbN|^ ~*iY`2AIob'"GIS. !06iW5we5Ve\6!oB=+\O/e/-r|-|P}dav of the animals. We are calling on the AVMA to use https://lnkd.in/em5eDiE3, We are proud to collaborate withThe Brooks Institute for Animal Rights Law and Policy for the relaunch of its National Animal Law Competitions, returning March 18-19, 2023, atHarvard Law School. State Agencies Outside the cage, researchers point, take notes, and watch her die. Co-hosted by the Animal Legal Defense Fund and the Center for Animal Law Studies at Lewis and Clark Law School this years conference marks the thirtieth anniversary of this premier animal law event. William Craig Lowrey is an attorney admitted to practice in New York State in 2018. J.D. WASHINGTON, Dec. 8, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today Animal Outlook, a not-for-profit animal advocacy organization, unveiled a new video that takes viewers on an intimate journey . Approximately 30 percent of your donation goes directly to outreach and education. Animal Protection Attorney, Legal/Legislative Strategist, Organizational Consultant. Our mission: Were strategically challenging animal agribusiness through undercover investigations, legal advocacy, corporate and food system reform, and disseminating information about the many harms of animal agriculture, empowering everyone to choose vegan. Veterinarians and animal advocates have begged the AVMA to stop condoning Learn more, Home Hitts clients come from varied economic sectors and backgrounds from factory workers to CEOs. Animal Partisan had a busy few months challenging the animal agriculture and research industries. . C. 10002(o)(6) applies to the requested records, as these records are exempted from disclosure by statute. VSD+ CO2 is theoretical and not yet practical.. =2r0)e,q[ :MtL%Ko.0mKn67d4~+9LSLBGqI1UvB \^C9c^_. X/aeELD:Zeb%c?#ti7m|ZG-*AxecP+2(FB858ZIVKYC5zBe)^y:}9*;4+HBA2gGM*5k|;ROb6#L8EC72)S1).BlH bafq1ldb Will Lowrey is the founder and Legal Counsel for Animal Partisan, a newly forming legal advocacy organization focused on challenging unlawful conduct in animal agriculture and research. Submitted via email to HouseJudiciary@rilegislature.gov Hearing Date: Wednesday, March 24, 2021 Time & Location: 6:00pm, Room 35 - State House To: Members of the House Judiciary Committee Submitted by: Will Lowrey, Legal Counsel, Animal Outlook, 804-307-4102 RE: Testimony in strong support of H 5731: Prohibiting the sale of force-fed poultry products In 2020, Iowa Select Farms, the states largest pork producer, killed healthy pigs, who could not be slaughtered for food due to Covid-induced slaughterhouse closures, by sealing off the airways and pumping in heat: a practice called ventilation shutdown plus. In a groundbreaking undercover investigation covered by The Intercept, the animal rights group Direct Action Everywhere revealed pigs screaming in distress for hours as they, essentially, roasted to death. [14] The DDA has not indicated whether this form meets this standard, so we cannot determine that this exception applies to the Appraisal and Indemnity Form in the DDAs possession. Called Ventilation Shutdown-Plus, this method involves sealing up the _*2wn$5TKFS0"t*1a^bxg:C)0mcRiI5CJc'+]5s">d5r2mG2C Animal Outlook is a national nonprofit 501(c)(3) animal advocacy organization based in Washington, DC and Los Angeles, CA. . The USDA financially compensates meat producers for these killings. hbbd```b``:"+ ,= D2`2,LNI7< H2Mh$&@"@qs ] I still remember the sound of their teeth grinding as they braced [for it]., Her best memories of the investigation, she said, were the cows, who, despite being numbered and treated as objects were loving, affectionate and intelligent even in the worst of circumstances.. even buried alive." -Direct Action Everywhere "We are concerned that our reputation as caring advocates for animals is tarnished each time our profession is used to lend legitimacy to this brutal practice." Joining is simple and doesnt need to cost a lot: You can become a sustaining member for as little as $3 or $5 a month. Phone: 800-248-2862 Congratulations! Will generously makes himself available to advise VLS animal law students, and to support VLSs new Animal Law and Policy Institute. Z^sU+x:c}ez~E of theGovernment Accountability Project. of a hen who survived VSD+ killings at Rembrandt Farms in Iowa in March2022. New documents obtained through federal and state public records requests reveal that, far from being an aberration, the meat industrys use of this gruesome method is still on the rise and its being abetted by government and organized veterinary medicine. Several years ago Animal Outlook conducted an undercover investigation of Martin Farms, in Pennsylvania, a dairy farm that proved to be the locus of much hideous cruelty to animals.Some of that cruelty was what we often call "gratuitous . Ventilation shutdown plus was also used in February at two chicken and turkey facilities in Kentucky, according to records from the U.S. Department of Agricultures Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, or APHIS, which oversees management of farm animal disease outbreaks. endstream endobj startxref C. 10001-10007 ("FOIA") in connection Determined to seek justice, Animal Outlook appealed. These animals include rats, mice, and birds bred for research, as well as agricultural animals used for agricultural research, said Jeremy Beckham, research advocacy coordinator for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. These researchers sought and received funding from the U.S. Poultry and Egg Association, an industry trade group, to study the effects of ventilation shutdown (VSD) on chickens . Fantastic. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our. C. 10002(o)(6) exempting records statutorily precluded from disclosure, including but not limited to, records under the federal Privacy Act, and 29 Del. Thus, we determine that the DDA has not sufficiently supported its denial of access to the requested records under Section 10002(o)(6) to meet its burden. Through assisting her clients, Hitt has learned first-hand the importance of bringing diverse voices to create meaningful change. When contacted by The Intercept, Sheila Hagen, Rembrandts vice president of HR and legal, immediately hung up.). Ag-Gag Laws: What Are They and Which States Still Have Them? . Admin. How many covert wars, miscarriages of justice, and dystopian technologies would remain hidden if our reporters werent on the beat? Animal Outlook is a national nonprofit 501(c)(3) animal advocacy organization based in Washington, DC and Los Angeles, CA. Ventilation shutdown plus heat or CO2 (VSD+) is at times the only method available to meet the 2448-hour goal to depopulate the birds and end their suffering from the disease., But if a company can perform VSD plus carbon dioxide, then presumably they have access to carbon dioxide and can kill their birds with CO2 gassing alone a method Reyes-Illg called relatively humane compared to VSD. About Animal Outlook National, non-profit farmed animal advocacy organization Founded in 1995 Mission: "Working today to build a better tomorrow for all animals. ie|"&l) k [2duKHQ'v!&(5asCmpDN`Pj(9Q ZJ While the AVMA cannot ban Ventilation Shutdown-Plus, their opposition to a Based on the large number of birds who are alive, healthy, and alert in the footage, it is a certainty that many more who appeared dead were buried alive, she wrote in a professional opinion after reviewing Direct Action Everywheres videos. x}Rn0>l4B*8tQi?Cj8fL4b yX3aU?JZ7`I'00G U@3"$?[NLV9 ]qf"1._ #>7, :gl]WvZ;/c@bQL;w(qUj ;v(bQhQm%:-zr8$BuvHKF$ ^F"\#kAVe7v37lQ[RXD-}`xv'^Gm/Ms:?Kg,PzVY2 Rosenberg said its easy to mistake live animals who have been unsuccessfully killed in depopulation for dead. wlowrey@animaloutlook.org, RE: FOIA Petition Regarding the Delaware Department of Agriculture. The references to your request for purposes of this Opinions discussion is limited to the first and second items of the request. But the 2017 final report lists the lead investigator as Kenneth Anderson, a professor in NC States Prestage Department of Poultry Science. You can listen to the Animal Law Podcast directly on our website (at the top of this page) or you can listen and subscribe on iTunes or your favorite podcatcher. . At graduation, he received the Learned Hand Award for ranking first in his class. [2] The Petition does not challenge the DDAs response to the third item of the request. According to a separate study published the following year by some of the same researchers, time to death is significantly longer for hens in a large, multilevel cage setting, which more closely resembles factory farm conditions than individual cages: 3.75 hours for VSD alone,2 hours for VSD plus heat, and 1.5 hours for VSD plus carbon dioxide. FOIA mandates that a public body provide citizens with reasonable access to public records for inspection and copying, but certain records and information are excluded from the definition of public record.[6] When a public body denies access to records, the public body has the burden of proof to justify its denial. [7] In certain circumstances, a sworn affidavit may be required to meet that burden.[8]. This premier online publication offers in-depth and up-to-date coverage on Canadas most important animal law and policy issues. However, the DDA does not explain how the purpose of this investigation entails civil or criminal law-enforcement. Accordingly, we find that the DDA failed to meet its burden of demonstrating that the investigatory files exemption applies here. Animal Outlook's groundbreaking work has been featured in: Four Meaningful Legal Victories For Farmed Animals, Animal Outlook Demands Investigation of Bravo Packing, USDA Withdraws Reckless High-Speed Chicken Slaughter Rule. This story is part of a new original series, Closer Look. Will is currently Legal Counsel for Animal Outlook, a nonprofit organization dedicated to challenging the status quo of animal agribusiness through undercover investigations, legal advocacy, corporate and food system reform, and empowering everyone to choose vegan. Animal Outlooks work strives to increase transparency by exposing the truth behind animal agriculture. An impassioned vegan and animal rights activist, Sebastianos primary focus is on promoting the benefits of a plant-based lifestyle globally; fighting against the cruelty and injustice of animal agriculture, and striving to protect the natural world from the catastrophic environmental effects of climate change resulting from the global consumption of animal products. After years of legal effort by Animal Outlook the case ended up in an appellate court in Pennsylvania which said, yeah, this is bad. We asked four times for criminal charges to be filed against Martin Farms, said Will Lowrey, legal counsel for Animal Outlook. Delaware's Governor Please urge the AVMA to condemn Ventilation Shutdown-Plus. w}tC:?x1{&Cj}b\<8.Qck@XuC6O]3-yvv[=|*b=YP{J5g;yaZ#tu$i I ;K+=-*?Jk[oLYmyEfkZUZJ[}UsOe1vU1mWMNqkbF",6^~5q+"+7EtF8beurE P>dC%Pehp" g+ Weather & Travel, Contact Us Good to see you in this space! [2] You contend that the Privacy Act does not cover the requested records because this Act only covers federal, not state, agencies and the type of records you seek are not covered by the definition of record under the Privacy Act. What to know - CNET, Asian Pacific American Law Students Association. Hitt is the founder and director of theFood Integrity Campaignof theGovernment Accountability Project. ?DqeW Further, to the extent the DDA believes that certain names, such as employee names, should be redacted for privacy concerns, you argue that the records should still be produced with any appropriate redactions. State animal health officials and producers carefully weigh the different options to determine the best option for humane depopulation and do not make such decisions lightly, USDA spokesperson Mike Stepien told The Intercept in an email. death. Animal Welfare. The statement went on to say that all employees shown in the video mishandling animals have been terminated and that the dairy was shocked that these incidents took place on our farm.. Will Lowrey argued the appeal before the appellate court. "For years, Bravo Packing has profited off the bodies of horses and cows butchered in filthy, squalid conditions and then sold to the unsuspecting public. If the virus is detected in even one bird, all the birds in the flock must be killed, even if they live in separate sheds. Thank you for your work and dedication for the animals. This Petition followed, alleging that the DDA violated FOIA by denying access to the records requested in the first and second items. on about your day, ask yourself: How likely is it that the story you just read would have been produced by a different news outlet if The Intercept hadnt done it?
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