Laws should protect vulnerable individuals, not safeguard violent ones — but that’s exactly what Massachusetts’ anti-wiretapping law does. Imagine what the world would look like today if some of the most iconic exposés in history had never come to light because of legal restrictions. The public has a right to know what really happens on farms, inside slaughterhouses and laboratories, and at other facilities that rely on secrecy, which is why PETA is challenging Massachusetts’s unconstitutional statute in a new lawsuit.
PETA: In Massachusetts, documenting animal abuse can be a crime. A state anti-wiretapping law makes it illegal to secretly record conversations, even when those recordings expose illegal and horrific cruelty to animals. That means abusers are shielded, whistleblowers are silenced, and animals suffer in the shadows… Other states allow exceptions for whistleblowers to expose cruelty even under strict two-party consent laws. Massachusetts needs to do the same.
The public has a right to know what really happens on farms, inside slaughterhouses and laboratories, and at other facilities that rely on secrecy — which is why we’re challenging Massachusetts’s unconstitutional statute in a new lawsuit. PETA Foundation lawyers are seeking an exemption to the law so that we can continue conducting vital undercover investigations that protect both animals and consumers, hold perpetrators accountable, and keep the public informed about crimes committed out of sight. The lawsuit is being filed in collaboration with the Animal Activist Legal Defense Project at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law…
Imagine what the world would look like today if some of the most iconic exposés in history had never come to light because of legal restrictions. Pretty bleak, right? PETA’s own undercover investigations have proven why audio evidence is essential. Here is just an example of what we’ve recorded: “You gotta beat on the bitch. Make her cry.” A supervisor at a pig farm in Iowa said this as he kicked a young pig in the face, abdomen, and genitals to make her move. PETA’s investigation led to the state’s first-ever convictions for the abuse or neglect of factory-farmed pigs…
PETA investigations led to arrests, convictions, facility closures, or meaningful changes, none of which would have been possible if laws like Massachusetts’ had prohibited secret recordings… Laws should protect vulnerable individuals, not safeguard violent ones—but that’s exactly what Massachusetts’ anti-wiretapping law does. The law is already under scrutiny: After a domestic assault victim was charged for recording her alleged abuser without consent, Massachusetts State Senator Patrick O’Connor co-sponsored a bill to protect people who record evidence of threats, harassment, or other crimes. SOURCE
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