Animal rights activist arrested after chicken truck crash in Battle Ground

BATTLE GROUND, Wash.  — An animal rights activist was arrested after taking hold of a chicken that was among the thousands being hauled by a truck that crashed.

The Columbian reports that the tractor-trailer landed on its side while trying to make a U-turn Monday afternoon near Battle Ground.

That caused more than 5,000 chickens in small cages that were headed for a Foster Farms processing plant to spill onto the road.

It's unclear how many chickens died.

And as traffic was blocked for hours for clean-up, about 30 animal rights activists showed up to the scene to protest.

One woman was arrested because she picked up a chicken and refused to give it back, though she hasn't booked.

The driver was ticketed for making an improper U-turn.