WASHINGTON — Supreme Court justices carved into California’s ban on the commercial slaughter of lame livestock Wednesday, leaving the state law’s future in doubt.
In a case that pits state vs. federal power, justices repeatedly suggested that California went too far with protecting animals already regulated by federal law and overseen by the U.S. Agriculture Department. “California should butt out,” Justice Antonin Scalia said.
The California law in question prohibits the slaughter of non-ambulatory pigs, sheep, goats or cattle. These are animals that can’t walk, because of disease, injury or other causes. The state law further requires that the downed animals be euthanized.
Federal law bans the slaughter of downed cattle, and the challenge heard Wednesday was to the state provision that covers swine.
The Federal Meat Inspection Act specifies that a state can’t impose slaughterhouse protections “in addition to or different” from the federal requirements.
California’s attorney responded that the federal law leaves open some possibilities for state regulation. McClatchy Newspapers
