Dairies win two cases

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, May 2003:

Ruling that government agencies are exempt from the
prohibitions on false advertising that apply to private citizens,
San Francisco Superior Court Judge David Garcia on March 25 dismissed
a lawsuit by PETA against a “Happy cows” ad campaign sponsored by the
California Milk Advisory Board. Arguing that scenes of cows in green
pastures used in the ads misrepresent the reality of how California
dairy cattle are kept, PETA previously complained to the Federal
Trade Commission. The FTC declined to take action in October 2002.

The Pennsylvania State Superior Court on April 8 upheld a
$96,000 verdict against the Fayette County SPCA for alleged invasion
of privacy in April 1993 while investigating the purported theft of a
dog and cruelty to a heifer reported by dairy farmer John Tabaj’s
former son-in-law during a messy divorce case. Tabaj was charged
with five counts of cruelty, but the charges were later dropped.
The incident caused the Pennsyl-vania legislature to mandate in
December 1994 that humane officers must be appointed by a judge. A
Fayette County jury in January 1992 ordered the $96,000 penalty
against the Fayette County SPCA, and ordered Tri-County Humane
Protection Inc., also involved in the raid, to pay Tabaj $105,000.
Tri-County Humane Protection is now defunct. The Fayette County SPCA
has indicated that the size of the award will force it to close,
too, leaving the county without an animal shelter.