Fourth Amendment Complaint to William C. Smith of the USDA, Asking That AgriProcessors Be Held Accountable for Its Crimes

• Mr. Lubinsky has stated falsely that "a veterinarian and 4 inspectors of the United States Department of Agriculture observe the kosher slaughter at all times as do 9 rabbis" ("PETA's Credibility on Kosher," The Jerusalem Post, 20 Dec. 2004). Although the absurdity of this statement requires no explanation to the USDA, the public who are not familiar with the agency's regulatory process and budget (and who purchase AgriProcessors' products) would have no reason to question its validity.
• In the same article, Mr. Lubinsky stated that "all the leading rabbis in the US and Israel have subsequently ruled that the schechita was kosher and the actions by the animals were reflexive in nature and not that of conscious animals." This is a false statement as documented in PETA's complaint to USDA. Moreover, the condemnation by rabbis of the illegal practices at AgriProcessors that followed the release of the video has been widespread. More than forty rabbis, many of them prominent leaders in the faith, have endorsed a petition ("Jewish Leaders Respond to Animal Abuse at Agriprocessors," available at http://www.humanekosher.com/) demanding extensive reforms at the slaughterhouse. The entire Rabbinical Assembly of the Conservative Movement, which represents more than one-third of U.S. Jewry, has condemned AgriProcessors in unequivocal language in a news release posted on its Web site and sent to all members (Rabbi Perry Raphael Rank, President, Rabbinical Assembly, Statement on Shehitah, available at http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/press/docs/Statement%20on%20Shehitah.doc).
• Mr. Lubinsky continues to state fraudulently that the behavior at AgriProcessors has always been humane, declaring that "Agri itself has vowed to continue to upgrade its humane standards, not because the animals were ever mishandled or that they endured pain � but because it wants to remove even the slightest perception that any animal is not treated humanely." ("There Can Be No Debate With PETA," The Jewish Press, 1 Jan. 2005.)
• Rabbi Menachem Genack continues to repeatedly and intentionally misrepresent to the public the number of animals who exhibited signs of consciousness after shechitah in the video. In a recent article, the rabbi states, "In the overwhelming number of cases the animal is insensate at [the time the trachea is removed]. However and inevitably, particularly when it is considered that 18,000 cattle were slaughtered during the seven-week period when the video was shot, there was a tiny percentage of the animals whose carotid arteries were not completely severed so they were not completely unconscious. � The USDA permits up to a five percent initial failure rate." ("Setting the Record Straight on Kosher Slaughter," The Jewish Press, 29 Dec. 2004.) Rabbi Genack is well aware that the video footage was taken on five days during a 42-day period, and that on each of these five days, PETA's investigator filmed—uninterrupted—the slaughter of a total of 278 cattle. Rabbi Genack also knows that the video shows that at least 25 percent of the 278 cattle (a very conservative estimate) remained conscious as their tracheas and esophagi were ripped from their throats—as when they were dumped from the facoima pen—and that more than 10 percent struggled to stand. If extrapolated as a representative sample of the 18,000 animals slaughtered over the 7-week period, more than 4,000 animals were still conscious when they hit the cement floor of the slaughterhouse, and thousands struggled to stand. PETA has repeatedly brought this misrepresentation to the attention of Rabbi Genack, but he chooses to continue his deceptions. PETA's correspondence with Rabbi Genack on this issue is available upon request.