‘Elevate the message’: Animal rights activists protest in St. George ahead of Circle Four Farm trial

ST. GEORGE — Between 30-40 people came out to support two men who filmed themselves taking two piglets from Utah’s Circle Four Farm as a part of an overall crusade to expose conditions within the facility.

Direct Action Everywhere animal rights activists come to St. George to support two men who face theft and burglary charges related to taking two piglets from the Circle Four Farm in Beaver County, Utah, as a part of an overall effort to expose animal cruelty at the pig farm, St. George, Utah, Oct. 3, 2022 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News

A video of the two men’s entry and search through the pig farm after nightfall was released on YouTube in 2017. As depictions and descriptions of the conditions can be graphic, viewer discretion is advised.

The men, animal rights activists Paul Darwin Picklesimer and Wayne Hsiung, are facing burglary and theft charges that could put both men in prison for over 10 years.

As jury selection for the trial started Monday, a group of animal rights activists gathered to march in downtown St. George shortly after 5 p.m. They held signs with “right to rescue” written on them along with blown-up photos of the conditions they say mother pigs and their piglets were found in at Circle Four.

Protesters, who were organized by the group Direct Action Everywhere (DxE), occupied the roundabout at Main and Tabernacle Street for a short while as they continued to hold up their signs and chanted in support of Hsiung and Picklesimer.

People from California, Minnesota, Utah and other locations were a part of Monday’s protest, activist Alison Morikawa-Bernard said, adding she was from California’s Bay Area.

Circle Four Farm, which is operated by Smithfield Foods, a subsidiary of China’s WH Group, has been under investigation by animal rights activists due to concerns over allegations that mother pigs and their young were kept in “gestation boxes,” 2-by-7 foot crates, that allowed for little to no movement.

Animal rights activists Paul Darwin Picklesimer and Wayne Hsuing shown taking two piglets from the Circle Four Farm in Beaver County, Utah. The piglets were taken as a part of an overall effort to expose animal cruelty at the pig farm, Beaver County, 2017 | Photo courtesy of Direct Action Everywhere, St. George News

“The 2017 investigation showed mother pigs in horrific conditions,” Morikawa-Bernard said. These conditions included bloody nipples, covered in feces, and piglets being crushed under the weight of their mothers who weren’t allowed to leave the gestation crates.

However, Hsiung and Picklesimer took two piglets – later named Lizzie and Lily – from the farm in Beaver County and saw to the piglets’ veterinary care and placement at an animal sanctuary afterward.

“It wasn’t until we released the New York Times article that explained about it (the farm) and showed the investigative footage that FBI agents decided to go on a multi-state hunt to find the piglets,” Morikawa-Bernard said.

As the judge overseeing the trial ruled footage and photos taken at the Circle Four Farm cannot be shown in court, Morikawa-Bernard said the protesters are showing them to everyone who passed by in order to “elevate the message as much as possible.”

Max Corwin, a protester from Salt Lake City, said the trial was a sham and that those involved on the prosecution side, such as the Utah Attorney General’s Office, were in the pockets of Smithfield. He said it’s the only reason for the severity of the theft and burglary charges Hsiung and Picklesimer faced.

“This is not your run-of-the-mill theft and burglary trial,” he said.

Corwin and other protesters also accused the state of covering up the ill-treatment animals received at factory farms and allowing Smithfield to deceive consumers.

The protesters soon left the roundabout and marched over to the steps of the Fifth District Courthouse before disbanding for the day.

A larger demonstration is expected on Tuesday, according to information relayed to St. George News on Monday.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

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