Nine plead guilty, no contest to animal cruelty charges

Mar. 4—Nine of 12 former employees accused of inhumane treatment of turkeys at seven farms across central and southeastern Pennsylvania, including Union County, have pleaded guilty or no contest to cruelty to animal charges in Cumberland County Court of Common Pleas since the charges were filed in 2022.

The defendants were sentenced to varying degrees of probation. The charges stem from an undercover investigation by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) at Plainville Farms, including a plant in Limestone Township, Union County.

"We are disappointed in the outcome of this case because this was not an isolated incident," said Maggie Marshall, associate legal counsel for animal equality. "These turkeys were subjected to cruelty at the hands of Plainville employees, and the law is clear that companies can be held liable for the acts of their employees. It is our opinion that the law did not prevail this time around."

Pennsylvania State Police charged the former Plainville workers with a total of 141 counts of cruelty to animals, the largest number in any factory-farmed animal case in U.S. history, according to PETA.

Since June, the following individuals pleaded guilty or no contest: Bryce P. Washington, 27; Juan Turi Baeza, 37, both of McSherrystown; Bryiant O. Perez-Paez, 42, of Hanover; Francisco M. Lebron-Cruz, 41, of Thomasville; Jose E. Turi Baeza, 30, of New Oxford; Kevin L. Wagaman, 51, of Fayetteville; Mitchell E. Buckley, 25, of Aspers; Christopher S. McArdle, 39, of Gettysburg; and Joseph Nunez Rosario, 43, of York.

PETA's investigator documented that workers kicked turkeys, including birds who were sick, injured and unable to walk. After failing to break their necks, they left the birds to convulse and die on the shed floor. Instead of trying to stop the abuse, a supervisor joined in, kicking turkeys and berating the investigator for not doing the same. Workers threw hens at one another as though they were basketballs. One worker pretended to masturbate with a dying bird, and another sat on and pretended to rape a live turkey.

Criminal complaints filed by Corporal Michael Spada, animal cruelty officer in the Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Investigative Services Section, allege the defendants kicked, stomped and beat turkeys at farms in Chester, Cumberland, Franklin, Fulton, Perry and Union counties.

The defendants were employed by Plainville Farms to capture and crate turkeys that were destined for food processing plants. The investigation began in August 2021 and resulted from a complaint filed by PETA. A PETA employee allegedly witnessed the actions of the turkey catchers.

The charges against Miguel Turi Cantellano, of McSherrystown, and Jason K. Turner, 24, of Hanover, are still pending. Another individual involved has not been identified.