Former California slaughterhouse worker sentenced in cow abuse case
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A former Southern California slaughterhouse worker was sentenced Wednesday to nine months in jail and probation after being caught on undercover video abusing sick and injured cows, leading to the largest beef recall in U.S. history, the Associated Press reports:
Daniel Ugarte Navarro, 49, was sentenced after pleading no contest in June to two felony counts of animal cruelty and two misdemeanor counts of cruelty to downed animals. (Navarro, left, is pictured above standing outside Chino Superior Court after his sentencing. With him is defense attorney Ruben Salazar.) Navarro can serve his jail time on weekends in a work-release program, must attend counseling and must serve three years of felony probation, said Susan Mickey, a spokeswoman for the San Bernardino County district attorney. He could also serve the time through electronic monitoring at the discretion of the jail, she said. Another worker, Rafael Sanchez Herrera, pleaded guilty in March to three misdemeanor counts of illegal movement of a non-ambulatory animal and was sentenced to six months in jail.
The undercover video shot by the Humane Society of the United States led to a federal investigation and the recall of 143 million pounds of beef in February. The video shows workers at Chino-based Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. dragging sick cows with metal chains and forklifts, shocking them with electric prods and shooting streams of water in their noses and faces.
Salazar told the Associated Press that his client was just following orders and that prosecutors overcharged Navarro to appease an angry public and animal-rights activists.
--Francisco Vara-Orta