Animal Law Podcast #113: The Case of the Cows Who Sought Sanctuary

Animal Law

Wayne Hsiung and Justin Marceau are joining us on this episode to talk about the criminal prosecution of Tracy Murphy, founder and director of Asha’s Farm Sanctuary in Newfane, New York, for supposedly stealing two cows who wandered onto her property seeking, you guessed it, sanctuary. You have probably heard of this case, but maybe, like me, you don’t know much about the legal issues or even what really happened. Happily, after two years of hideous stress and significant harassment, Tracy was recently cleared when the charges against her were dismissed. While that is great news, it also means that the case did not go to trial, and we never really heard the full story of what happened or why the law was clearly on her side. Fortunately, Justin and Wayne are here to get into the details of the facts and the relevant law and to talk about the meaning of this case in the fight against animal abuse.

ABOUT OUR GUESTS

Justin Marceau is a Professor of Law and the Faculty Director of the Animal Law Program at the University of Denver. Justin authored or co-authored three books with Cambridge University Press. Marceau also co-founded and helps direct a first-of-its-kind law school clinic, the Animal Activist Legal Defense Project, which provides activists with representation in criminal and civil litigation. Justin serves on the board of a number of entities, including the non-human rights project and the Luvin Arms farm sanctuary, as well as the Cambridge Centre for Animal Rights. He is also an active member of several working groups for the Brooks Institute for animal rights law and policy.

Wayne Hsiung is an animal cruelty investigator, former faculty member at Northwestern School of Law, and co-founder and Executive Director of The Simple Heart Initiative. He has led teams that have investigated and rescued animals from factory farms and slaughterhouses across the nation – challenging unconstitutional “ag-gag” laws in the process – and has organized successful campaigns to ban fur in San Francisco and California. He served as lead counsel (and, sometimes, defendant) in four “right to rescue” trials in which activists were prosecuted after being charged for giving aid to sick and dying animals in factory farms, garnering media attention from The New York Times. He is also a co-founder and former lead organizer of the grassroots animal rights network Direct Action Everywhere. He is the proud parent of Oliver, who was rescued from the dog meat trade.

RESOURCES

• The Simple Heart
• Wayne Hsiung on Youtube
• Wayne Hsiung on Instagram

INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT

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