An animal activist leader who is also a lawyer was sentenced to 90 days in jail for his role in breaking into a chicken barn and removing birds.
He argued that his group, members of Direct Action Everywhere, were rescuing the birds from abuse.
The judge said there is a difference between activism and criminalityand “in this case you chose to break and law.”
Wayne Hsiung, 42, was charged after breaking into Sunrise Farms in 2018 and Reichert Duck Farm in 2019.
He was acquitted by a jury in Utah, but convicted in North Carolina where he took a goat from a ranch.
In each of the farm protests, hundreds of animal welfare activists entered the properties and removed chickens and ducks that they claimed were mistreated.
