Posted January 15, 2014
A New Mexico judge will decide on Friday whether a
company can open a horse slaughter facility in the state, according to an
article by Barry Massey of the Associated Press available here.
State District Judge, Matthew Wilson recently announced
that he will issue a written decision on Attorney General Gary King’s request
for a preliminary injunction against Valley Meat Co. on Friday. King requested the injunction, arguing that the
company would violate state environmental and food safety laws if it were to
begin operations.
Even if the judge lifts the temporary injunction, the facility
would need a permit from state regulators to discharge waste into tanks and
lagoons on the company’s property. The
permit is pending before the secretary of the state Environment Department.
Blair Dunn, attorney for Valley Meat, said that the injunction
should not be granted. “This threat of
imminent harm is just not there,” said Dunn.
The owners of Valley Meat plan to sue State Attorney
General Gary King for slander over his efforts to block the plant from opening,
according to an article by AgWeek available here.
Last month, King requested and secured a temporary
restraining order against Valley Meat, which planned to begin processing horse
meat on Jan. 1. The lawsuit will claim
slander, harassment, and malicious abuse of process, according to the letter of
intent.
A spokesman for the attorney general “dismissed the
lawsuit as frivolous and insisted it would not sway his boss from fighting to
keep the facility from opening.”
For more information on this case, a recent post from this
blog is available here. For more information on animal welfare, please
visit the National Agricultural Law Center’s website here.
