Animal Rescuer Zoe Rosenberg Sentenced To 90 Days In Jail For Saving Four Sick Chickens

Yesterday, animal rescuer Zoe Rosenberg was sentenced to 90 days in jail for saving four chickens from Perdue’s Petaluma Poultry slaughterhouse. She is eligible for alternative custody for the final 60 days but has been ordered to report to the Sonoma County Main Adult Facility on December 10th to serve the first 30 days.

Ms. Rosenberg was convicted in October of three misdemeanors and one felony conspiracy following a six-week trial. Supporters say the 90-day jail sentence could pose a serious health risk, given her long-standing medical conditions. The four sick chickens she rescued were reportedly valued at $24.

Ms. Rosenberg stated at her sentencing, “I am filled with remorse for every animal I have failed to save. To the little baby chick who is currently writhing in pain on the floor of a Perdue factory farm, the young rooster being violently slammed into a Perdue transport crate, and the terrified hen about to enter Perdue’s scalding tank while fully conscious, I am sorry.”

According to Direct Action Everywhere, Ms. Rosenberg has had Type 1 diabetes since she was eight years old and relies on a life-sustaining insulin pump. When she was arrested, the jail threatened to take away her pump, and she was bailed out to protect her life. In September, she was hospitalized with gastroparesis—a partially paralyzed stomach and a complication of her diabetes. She was given a feeding tube in the hospital, which she remains on today, and she continues to take an experimental drug.

Following her conviction, prosecutors urged the judge to take Ms. Rosenberg into custody immediately, despite these health risks and her full compliance with all pre-trial conditions for nearly two years. Ms. Rosenberg’s attorney condemned the sentence.

“Jailing Ms. Rosenberg for the nonviolent rescue of chickens worth less than $25 is unconscionable,” said Chris Carraway, Staff Attorney at the Animal Activist Legal Defense Project. “Sonoma County has put Ms. Rosenberg’s life at risk all to protect a violent, multibillion dollar industry from the idea conveyed by Ms. Rosenberg’s actions: that farmed animals deserve to live peacefully at sanctuaries rather than have their throats slit to satisfy our tastebuds.”

Petaluma Poultry is owned by Perdue Foods, one of the country’s largest poultry producers. Ms. Rosenberg’s open rescue was prompted by years of investigations exposing routine violations of California’s animal cruelty laws at Petaluma Poultry factory farms in Sonoma County, including birds collapsed on the floor or stuck on their backs and unable to access food or water. Both Sonoma County and the city of Petaluma have repeatedly refused to prosecute animal cruelty at Petaluma Poultry, as recently as two weeks ago.

Sadly, at Ms. Rosenberg’s trial, the court severely limited what the jury was able to know about prior findings of cruelty at Petaluma Poultry, despite the fact that the information heavily influenced Ms. Rosenberg’s belief that rescue was necessary.

Ms. Rosenberg was given only one day of credit toward her sentence for the nearly two years she spent on pretrial release wearing an ankle monitor.

Ms. Rosenberg’s attorneys filed a notice of appeal today in court. The rescued chickens, whom Ms. Rosenberg named Poppy, Ivy, Aster, and Azalea, are alive and well at a sanctuary for rescued farmed animals.