Activist Jailed for Mink Farm Break-In Released Early

Victor VanOrden released after serving only three months of his five year sentence.

Awesome news: Victor has been granted parole and should be released today. In February he received an exorbitant sentence of five years for the “crime” of cutting a fence and opening a single cage at the Circle K Fur Farm in Sioux City, Iowa. This week, the judge granted Victor parole, reducing his sentence by over 90%.

His codefendant (and wife) Kellie received a 30 day sentence for the same action. She was released last month.

Kellie and Victor’s case was somewhat unusual in that it was prosecuted on the state level, and not federal. Generally, the feds prefer to take politically charged and / or very high profile cases – particularly animal liberation or eco-sabotage cases. There can be advantages and disadvantages to each, depending on the specifics of a crime, although generally federal cases carry much longer sentences. In this case, Victor and Kellie were fortunate to be charged not just by the state, but a state which has parole, allowing them to be free after serving relatively short sentences.

Welcome home.

In the coming days, I’ll be posting new details that have not been made public about the events that led to their arrest.

In the meantime, view an aerial image of the Circle K Fur Farm .

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