A quirk in Pennsylvania’s legal code — the ability of private citizens to challenge government officials’ decision not to prosecute — enabled an animal rights group to set a new precedent for animal law and potentially expose the treatment of farmed animals that, thus far, has remained largely unscrutinized by the legal system, reports Vox. The legal debate surrounds a case involving the rights group Animal Outlook, who captured a variety of gross examples of animal cruelty committed at Martin Farms, a Pennsylvania dairy farm. That prompted an investigation by the district attorney of Franklin County in Pennsylvania, where Chambersburg is located, who chose to not press charges against the farm as a corporation, the owner, and 14 current and former employees.
The organization appealed to Pennsylvania’s Superior Court, where the three-judge panel ruled that the lower court was required to order the Franklin County district attorney to prosecute Martin Farms for animal cruelty, including over common practices like dehorning without pain mitigation. This decision could lead to advocates challenging other common farming practices in the courts.