4 charged under Utah’s controversial 'ag-gag' law

Source: The Spectrum, St. George, Utah

Four animal activists who took pictures of a large southwestern Utah hog farm have pleaded not guilty to charges filed under a controversial law that criminalizes undercover investigations of slaughterhouses and factory farms.

The four from California and Maryland entered the pleas Wednesday and Thursday to charges of trespass and agricultural operation interference.

The activists from the Farm Animal Rights Movement are accused of driving onto private property at Circle Four Farms in Milford and taking pictures Sept. 24, said Iron County sheriff’s Lt. Del Schlosser.

An attorney for the group says they were on a public road and took images of buildings, not animals or workers.

Read more: http://www.thespectrum.com/story/news/local/2015/01/08/charged-utahs-controversial-ag-gag-law/21478181/