Ridglan Farms activists protest at capitol, political figures weigh in

MILWAUKEE - Activists failed in their effort to remove 2,000 beagles from a controversial Wisconsin breeding farm over the weekend. But now, they are entering the next phase of their campaign – the public relations battle.

New phase of campaign

What we know:

Five of the 25 activists arrested on Saturday, April 18, remain in the Dane County Jail, including lead organizer Wayne Hsiung.

Meanwhile, Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne has filed charges against Ridglan Farms. They are not criminal charges. Rather, he is charging the operators of the farm with a civil violation of construction or altering a manure facility without a permit.

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"Rescue" attempt

Dig deeper:

It is a small victory for the more than 1,000 animal welfare advocates whose self-described "rescue" attempt was rebuffed by 17 law enforcement agencies.

New video just in to FOX6 News shows one of the peak moments of conflict as activists tried to force their way through a gap in the fence. In that video, you can see an officer shoot one activist in the leg with non-lethal rubber bullets. Another one stayed on the ground for several minutes. Supporters of the cause later said he had been kicked in the head and lost some teeth.

In the end, the effort to remove 2,000 beagles fell 2,000 beagles short. Activists did not get a single dog.

Now, their campaign shifts from open rescue to public appeals. Hundreds of activists and their supporters filled the capitol rotunda on Monday, April 20, calling on public officials to do what they could not.

"I don’t know what more we can do. We are peaceful, non-violent activists who are just asking for our government officials to do their job and help the dogs," said Rebekah Robinson with Dane4Dogs.

Ridglan statement

What they're saying:

In a statement on Monday, Ridglan Farms said the following:

"This past weekend’s assault on Ridglan Farms - a veterinary medicine research facility dedicated to improving the health of our pet animals - followed months of harassment of our employees and customers. We have received countless phone and email threats that were clearly inspired and fueled by organizers of Saturday’s attack. Those individuals and their followers have spread false and highly misleading claims about our research and our deep commitment to animal welfare, fueling dangerous levels of anger and hatred. Additionally, staff have been repeatedly followed as they exit the facility, causing them to fear for their safety and their families’ safety.

"If any of Saturday’s attack participants, their supporters or police were injured, the fault lies squarely on the shoulders of Wayne Hsiung, who organized, egged on and then led hundreds of individuals in a coordinated, violent assault on our facility. Instead of respecting the rule of law and the results of a thorough investigation which led to a binding legal agreement between the state of Wisconsin and Ridglan Farms, Mr Hsiung decided to encourage lawlessness and vigilantism because he did not personally agree with the results of the legal process.

"Saturday’s actions included the decision by one break-in participant to crash a vehicle through the gate of Ridglan Farms and then drive at high speed through the property nearly hitting several law enforcement officers, bystanders and a large capacity propane tank. (Link to newly expanded video clip below.) These actions could have easily resulted in several injuries or deaths. Following Saturday’s violence and suggestions by this same group to target farms and other research facilities in the future, we hope the U.S. legal system will hold Mr. Hsiung and his many accomplices fully accountable.

"Because Mr. Hsiung has a significant criminal history across several states, including a felony conviction, we are encouraging the State Bar of California to immediately suspend Mr. Hsiung’s law license and then initiate disbarment proceedings against him."

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Political figures weigh in

What they're saying:

Powerful political figures on opposite sides of the political aisle are weighing in on Ridglan Farms.

Just before Saturday's raid, Congressman Mark Pocan called for the beagles to be re-homed. He's a Democrat whose district includes Ridglan Farms.

On Friday, he grilled US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about continued funding of dog experiments.

"Right now you’re still giving money to groups through the NIH that are giving money to this highly questionable farm," said Rep. Pocan.

"I believe you, but I have a hard time believing that. I need to look into this, because we’ve done more than any other administration in history to end animal testing," replied US Health Secretary Kennedy.

On the other side of the aisle, President Trump's daughter-in-law is pleading with Ridglan Farms to let the dogs go.

Lara Trump is married to the president's son, Eric Trump.

She says two groups she works with closely offered a million dollars to Ridglan to give the dogs up.

"I would like to encourage Ridglan Farms, please do the right thing. Please ensure these dogs end up in loving homes. Please take them out of this awful situation. And please take the million dollars," said Lara Trump.

Ridglan Farms acknowledges it received proposals for the dogs, but says at this point it does not have additional information to share.

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