The courtroom drama surrounding the Zoe Rosenberg Chicken Rescue Trial reached a pivotal moment as closing arguments wrapped up Tuesday and the jury got the case. The 23-year-old animal rights investigator stands accused of entering the Petaluma Poultry slaughterhouse in June 2023 and rescuing four sick chickens—whom she named Poppy, Ivy, Aster, and Azalea. Her charges include one count of felony conspiracy and several misdemeanors for alleged trespass and tampering with a vehicle.

Rosenberg’s legal team argues that her actions were a necessary “open rescue”—a direct response, they maintain, to what they describe as chronic, unaddressed cruelty at the facility. They emphasize that she had alerted authorities multiple times to what she and her organization, Direct Action Everywhere (DxE), say were egregious violations of California animal cruelty laws. When no action was taken, she stepped in herself to rescue the birds.

On the other side, the company and prosecutors contend that the unauthorized entry and removal of animals was unlawful. The trial has thus become less about the four birds and more about whether the law permits activists to physically intervene when they believe animals are being subjected to unnecessary suffering. The trial has garnered global media coverage amplifying the larger debate about the treatment of billions of animals in industrialized animal agriculture.

Central to the dispute is the role of Petaluma Poultry, a subsidiary of Perdue Farms, a huge poultry producer that supplies major grocery chains. For years, DxE has accused the facility of routine cruelty, including birds collapsed or unable to reach food or water. DxE claims it has documented this on video through its undercover investigations. Petaluma Poultry and its parent company vehemently deny the allegations, asserting that they are committed to high welfare standards and describing DxE as an extremist group. The company is invited on any time.

As the trial arrives at its climax, the stakes are high. A conviction could send Rosenberg to prison for about five years. At the same time, an acquittal—or even a partial victory on legal grounds—could empower animal rights activists pushing for an animal bill of rights, which DxE has named Rose’s Law, after a lone chicken authorities allowed activists to rescue during a previous open rescue.

Now, UnchainedTV’s Jane Velez-Mitchell hosts an expert panel and a reporter LIVE at the Northern California courthouse as this pivotal day unfolds. Will jurors reach a verdict today? We shall see.