A Sonoma County judge on Wednesday sentenced Berkeley animal rights activist Zoe Rosenberg to 90 days for a felony conspiracy conviction stemming from 2023 breaches at Petaluma Poultry.
Rosenberg, 23, sat quietly in a courtroom packed with supporters as Judge Kenneth Gnoss announced the punishment in Sonoma County Superior Court, closing out nearly two years of proceedings over whether her actions amounted to a crime or exposed animal cruelty June 13, 2023.
A jury on Oct. 29 found Rosenberg guilty of one count of felony conspiracy and three misdemeanors after a nearly monthlong trial. On Wednesday, Gnoss ordered her to serve 30 days in jail and 60 days through a jail-alternative program — followed by two years of probation. She must turn herself in by Dec. 10.
Jail-alternative programs can include community service, work release or other supervised options that allow defendants to serve part of their sentence outside a jail facility. As part of the terms, Rosenberg was also ordered to stay at least 100 yards from the Perdue-owned Petaluma Poultry facility on Lakeville Highway.
She is also barred from contacting DxE members involved in the case, including Raven Deerbrook and Carla Cabral. Deerbrook was initially charged before entering a plea deal, and both women testified on Rosenberg’s behalf.
Rosenberg read a brief statement before sentencing, saying she felt remorse — not for the events of June 13 but for not being able to rescue more chickens from poultry facilities. Gnoss said he was unconvinced.
“Not once did I hear you say you’re sorry for your criminal conduct,” he told her.
Rosenberg told The Press Democrat she is frightened by the prospect of serving time because of her medical conditions but said her thoughts remained with the animals she described trying to help.
“It’s obviously scary to think about any length of a jail sentence given my medical situation, but the thing that’s the most heavy on my mind is just knowing that these animals are going through so much worse,” she said.
Rosenberg’s trial drew national attention because of her ties to Direct Action Everywhere, or DxE, an animal rights organization known for confrontational protests. DxE has organized demonstrations at poultry farms and Trader Joe’s stores in Sonoma County and backed a 2024 ballot measure to restrict large-scale poultry and livestock operations. Voters rejected that proposal.
Dayna Ghirardelli, executive director of the Sonoma County Farm Bureau, said she was “actually disappointed” by the ruling.
“I, along with many people in the community, wish the sentencing was more severe,” she said.
DxE members and supporters frequently filled most of the seats in Gnoss’ courtroom during her hearings. Organizers said “hundreds” attended Wednesday’s sentencing.
Before walking into the courtroom, Rosenberg addressed at least 145 supporters gathered outside and insisted she had done the right thing. She said the four chickens she removed had been spared because of her actions. “They would have died in pain and their stories would have died with them,” she told the crowd.
Rosenberg has said she did nothing wrong and was not sorry for her actions. Prosecutors cited what they described as a lack of remorse in recommending a 180-day jail sentence.
District Attorney Carla Rodriguez said the lighter sentence may not deter Rosenberg or other DxE members, adding that the county’s repeated farm incursions “are illegal and must stop.”
Her attorneys took the opposite view, saying Rosenberg should receive credit for wearing an ankle monitor before trial. They also said incarceration would disrupt her treatment for type 1 diabetes and gastroparesis, a disorder that affects the stomach muscles and slows digestion. She used a feeding tube during the trial and said on social media that she was hospitalized in September before the case began.
Prosecutors acknowledged her medical conditions in their sentencing brief and said Rosenberg would continue to receive care while in custody.
Advocates, including Rosenberg’s parents, argued she is a good person and that jail time could be dangerous given her medical conditions. Her mother, Sherstin Rosenberg, said her daughter “could end up in an emergency room or worse.”
“I am terrified for my daughter,” she said.
Jurors found Rosenberg unlawfully entered Petaluma Poultry on May 21 and June 13, 2023, searched company files, placed GPS trackers on vehicles and removed four chickens.
Rosenberg admitted taking the birds — later named Poppy, Ivy, Aster and Azalea — but said it was a “rescue,” not theft. Her attorneys argued she acted out of moral duty to save animals she believed were suffering, citing video footage DxE later posted online.
Prosecutors noted the timing of the actions coincided with DxE’s annual liberation conference and Rosenberg’s birthday. They emphasized during trial that no footage was introduced showing injured chickens and that all of the defense witnesses were connected to DxE and shared its views on veganism.
Rosenberg and her supporters have said she is being prosecuted for taking chickens worth about $25. Prosecutors and Petaluma Poultry employees countered that the entry forced a shutdown and staff rescheduling that cost the company more than $100,000.
“We will continue to defend the rule of law against DxE’s ongoing attempts to undermine it, and we will continue to pursue every appropriate avenue to protect our people and food safety standards,” Herb Frerichs, attorney for Petaluma Poultry, said in a statement following the sentence.
Sonoma County sheriff’s deputies arrested Rosenberg outside the courthouse in November 2023, shortly after DxE co-founder Wayne Hsiung was sentenced to 90 days in jail and two years’ probation in a similar Sonoma County case. Hsiung, who led a 2018 protest at Sunrise Farms, was convicted of felony conspiracy to commit trespass. On Nov. 21, Judge Laura Passaglia ordered him to pay about $191,000 in restitution to Sunrise Farms and Weber Family Farms, owned by brothers Mike and Scott Weber.
Mike Weber told The Press Democrat he plans to donate the money to the Sonoma County Sheriff’s K-9 Association.
You can reach Staff Writer Colin Atagi at colin.atagi@pressdemocrat.com.