Court Confirms Acquittal for ARIWA Animal Rights Activists

Animal Rights Watch (ARIWA) published footage in 2013 from the «van Gennip Tierzuchtanlagen GmbH» in Sandbeiendorf (Saxony-Anhalt).

The recordings documented massive animal cruelty and serious violations of animal welfare law at one of Germany's largest pig breeding operations. Official inspections confirmed the majority of the violations. While criminal proceedings against those responsible at van Gennip Tierzuchtanlagen GmbH & Co. Handels-Kommanditgesellschaft for violation of § 17 of the Animal Welfare Act (TierSchG) were discontinued at the end of 2015, the investigative activists had already appeared before the Haldensleben District Court in September 2016 on charges of trespassing.

Acquittal on Grounds of Justifying Necessity

The trial ended with an acquittal under § 34 of the German Criminal Code, "Justifying Emergency." The judge at the Haldensleben District Court found that the legal interest of animal welfare at the facility housing 65’000 animals had been violated in a manner that justified the trespass committed by the three activists. The Magdeburg Public Prosecutor's Office appealed the verdict. The Magdeburg Regional Court upheld the ruling in October 2017. In its reasoning, the Regional Court went even further than the Haldensleben District Court's argumentation, crediting the defendants with the "stronger" justification of emergency assistance (§ 32 of the German Criminal Code). The public prosecutor's office filed an appeal on points of law against this ruling. The appeal hearing took place on 22 February 2018 at the Naumburg Higher Regional Court. The Higher Regional Court rejected the prosecution's appeal. The acquittal is therefore legally valid — an important ruling in the name of the animals.

Entering facilities for documentation purposes justified

From ARIWA's perspective, entering animal industry facilities for documentation and evidentiary purposes is justified. In our view, animals' right to physical and psychological integrity and to a life free from suffering and distress outweighs the property rights of facility operators and their economic interests. We are not aware of any milder means of informing the public about conditions in factory farms and motivating criminal prosecution and veterinary authorities to take action. Veterinary authorities often only take action against animal welfare violations once video footage exists and its publication generates public interest in further investigation. We therefore do not regard the creation and distribution of such recordings as a legal violation, but rather as a civic duty. The ruling in this appeal proceedings could fundamentally influence the legal assessment of such cases.

Milestone for the animal rights movement

«In PETA's view, it is not only justified but necessary to enter animal holding facilities for documentation purposes. The physical and psychological integrity of animals outweighs the property rights of facility operators. Veterinary authorities, moreover, often only become active once evidence already exists and the matter is of public interest — in this case too, the responsible authorities failed to act despite having knowledge of the situation. The defendants therefore had to take action themselves in order to document the grievances. The court noted approvingly that the animal rights activists acted under their real names and did not remain anonymous. Consumers are deceived by the lies of the animal production industry, yet they should be informed about the true conditions in these facilities in order to make conscious purchasing decisions. The fact that the defendants had to go through three levels of courts and were thus criminalized by the justice system is scandalous. However, the review proceedings are likely to fundamentally influence the legal assessment of similar cases — making this ruling a milestone for the animal rights movement and a severe blow against the agricultural mafia,» says Dr. Edmund Haferbeck, Head of the Legal and Science Department at PETA.