Alleged hen abuse reflects industry norm, defense attorney argues

A defense attorney suggested Wednesday that alleged abuses at a Stanislaus County egg farm are actually the industry norm.

The practices came up during the second day of a preliminary hearing for Andy Yi Keunh Cheung and Lien Tuong Diep. They are accused of leaving about 50,000 hens without feed at the Carpenter Road farm in February 2012.

Cheung’s attorney, Martha Carlton-Magana, said hens are sometimes deprived of feed to stimulate egg production. She also said they tend to lose weight as they reach the end of their two-year productive lives.

The attorney raised the points during questioning of Timothy Wester, who testified for a second day about his investigation at the farm for the Stanislaus Animal Services Agency. Wester said Tuesday that he saw dead and emaciated hens, as well as a large amount of manure, inside the two barns housing the hen cages.

Judge Thomas Zeff will decide whether Cheung, 42, and Diep, 37, should stand trial on felony charges of animal abuse following the hearing in Stanislaus County Superior Court.

Authorities said most of the hens died before the discovery at A&L Poultry, just south of Fulkerth Road, or were euthanized shortly afterward. Close to 4,500 survivors went to three animal sanctuaries in Northern California.

Carlton-Magana and Diep’s attorney, Marlon Simon, again suggested Wednesday that the hens died inadvertently as A&L was trying to arrange their pickup by a sanctuary. That could explain the lack of feed on hand.

Wester’s response: “Personally, if someone is going to babysit my kids tomorrow, I’m still going to feed them today.”

The issue of withholding feed is addressed in guidelines from United Egg Producers, an industry group. It notes that this practice had been common but recommends using alternative ways of stimulating egg production.

This story was originally published May 27, 2015 at 6:13 PM with the headline "Alleged hen abuse reflects industry norm, defense attorney argues."