Woman, who gave water to pigs headed for slaughter, in court Monday

An animal-rights activist charged with mischief after she gave some water to pigs that were being trucked to a southern Ontario slaughterhouse will appear in Milton court today to set trial dates.

Charges against Anita Krajnc relate to an incident that occurred on a hot day in June.

She says when the truck stopped at a red light in Burlington, she used water bottles to give the pigs a drink through slats in the trailer.

She calls the charges she's facing outrageous, insisting she did nothing wrong by helping thirsty pigs — but the truck driver said her actions presented a safety hazard.

Krajnc said her group stands on a traffic island at Appleby Line and Harvester Road once a week to "bear witness" to the animals going to slaughter at Fearman's Pork Inc.

On June 22, she said, temperatures were high, and her group poured water through the holes. In court documents, Halton police refer to it as an "unknown liquid."

Krajnc said the driver got out and told them to stop, and she quoted a Bible verse at him about giving water to the thirsty.

"He said, 'They're not humans, you dumb frigging broad,'" she told CBC News on Tuesday.

The pork farmer who owned the pigs, Eric Van Boekel of Oxford County, contacted police the next day, court documents say. Police investigated and pursued the mischief charge. Punishment for the charge ranges from a fine to up to 10 years in prison.

Gary Grill, Kranjc's Toronto-based lawyer, said the charge is puzzling. "In legal circles, people are scratching their heads."

"Taxpayers are paying for this."