Jan Shepel
Associate Editor
NEILLSVILLE
The Amish farmer brought to court on charges that he refused to register his livestock premises with the state has won his case in Clark County Court.
In a ruling Tuesday (March 9) Clark County Circuit Court Judge Jon Counsell ruled the state didn’t show why other systems couldn’t be used to track the Amish livestock in case of a disease outbreak.
The case involved Emanuel Miller Jr., of Loyal, who refused to comply with a 2005 law that requires the registration of any premises where livestock are kept. State veterinary officials say the database of livestock facilities is necessary to track disease in case of outbreaks.
At the request of the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, Miller was charged in Clark County for failing to register his livestock premises. At his September trial he and his father, a senior deacon of their church, testified that they believed premises registration was the “first step” in a National Animal Identification System that would eventually seek to tag each animal with a number and track their movements.
Their objection to the system was on religious grounds. The Millers testified in court, and the senior Miller told members of the state Ag Board at one of its earlier meetings that he and his sect believe that would be the equivalent of the mark of the beast mentioned in the Bible. If they complied, it would mean eternal damnation for them.
Counsell’s ruling was that the state failed to show why alternatives that would not affect Miller’s religious freedom could not achieve the same goal as premises registration.
Dr. Paul McGraw, assistant state veterinarian, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he expects the state to appeal.
