Challenging Kansas’s Ag-Gag Law
Animal Legal Defense Fund et. al. v. Kelly et. al.
The Animal Legal Defense Fund filed a lawsuit in Kansas challenging the constitutionality of the state’s Ag-Gag law, which makes it a crime to document animal cruelty at factory farms and slaughterhouses.
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On December 5, 2018, The Animal Legal Defense Fund — with the Center for Food Safety, Public Justice, and Kansas-area farmed animal organizations, Shy 38, Inc., and Hope Sanctuary — filed a lawsuit in Kansas challenging the constitutionality of the state’s Ag-Gag law, which makes it a crime to document animal cruelty at factory farms and slaughterhouses.
Who is being sued, why, and under what law? The lawsuit was brought against Kansas’s governor and attorney general, on the grounds that the Ag-Gag law violates the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Enacted in 1990, the Kansas Ag-Gag law is the oldest such law in the United States, and has deterred undercover investigations at animal facilities, including factory farms, for nearly three decades.
What court is the lawsuit filed in? The United States District Court for the District of Kansas.
No federal laws govern the condition in which farmed animals are raised and most state anti-cruelty laws exempt farmed animals.
Why this case is important: Kansas is a major producer of cows, pigs, and other animals raised for human consumption. Virtually all of these animals are raised in inhumane Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO), also known as factory farms, where animals undergo routine mutilations and intensive confinement before they are trucked to slaughter.
Kansas’s Ag-Gag law has prevented whistleblowers from investigating the cruel conditions that millions of animals endure. Recent undercover investigations at animal agriculture facilities outside Kansas have uncovered abusive and illegal treatment of animals, as well as violations of laws intended to protect the safety of workers and the general public.
The Animal Legal Defense Fund led coalitions that successfully struck down significant parts of Ag-Gag laws in Utah and Idaho. We continue to challenge Ag-Gag laws in the states where they are still in effect.
Stop Ag-Gag Laws
Undercover investigations and whistleblowers have exposed some of the worst aspects of factory farming, but Ag-Gag laws punish people who speak out about cruelty in animal agriculture. Voice your opposition.
Recent News
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Iowa Ag-Gag Law 2.0 is Unconstitutional
We are deeply disappointed that despite fierce opposition from the public, Iowa has enacted a new Ag-Gag law just months after a federal court struck down a similar Iowa law that criminalized investigations at factory farms, slaughterhouses, and puppy millMarch 14, 2019 Press Release -
Federal Farm Bill Includes Important Protections for Animals
The sweeping Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 — an omnibus federal law passed approximately every five years, commonly known as the “farm bill” — included several important provisions, including some victories for animals.March 11, 2019 Animal Law Update -
Iowa Ag-Gag Take Two –Taxpayers Will Foot the Bill to Defend Unconstitutional Proposed Law
New Iowa legislation would make it a crime for a person to gain access to an agricultural production facility through deception if the person intends to cause an “injury” to the “business interest” of the facility.March 8, 2019 News
Related Cases
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Challenging Idaho’s Ag-Gag Law
Animal Legal Defense Fund v. C. L. “Butch” Otter
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Challenging Iowa’s Ag-Gag Law
Animal Legal Defense Fund v. Kimberly K. Reynolds
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Challenging Utah’s Ag-Gag Law
Animal Legal Defense Fund v. Gary Herbert
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See MoreStop Ag-Gag Laws
Undercover investigations and whistleblowers have exposed some of the worst aspects of factory farming, but Ag-Gag laws punish people who speak out about cruelty in animal agriculture. Voice your opposition.