Two animal rights activists charged with stealing two chickens from a truck headed for slaughter have just been acquitted, drawing attention to the cruelty of factory farming in America.

According to Vox, the chickens — worth $8.16 each — were both severely ill and struggled to stand: One of the chickens (Ethan) died four days after the rescue, while the other (Jax) recovered after intensive veterinary care and now lives on a farm sanctuary.

“Of course they wanted this to be publicized they set it up they wanted to be arrested and they wanted it to be brought to trial,” said Kummer. “It’s great, what the discovery led to in the trial. For example these animals were too sick to be slaughtered, they had bacteria in their systems that could’ve led to human illness.”

Corby Kummer is executive director of the Food and Society policy program at the Aspen Institute, a senior editor at The Atlantic and a senior lecturer at the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy