The petition calls for a new trial on the grounds of interpretation and implementation errors regarding the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act and the Fifth Amendment.
'Defendants did nothing that 20/20, Dateline or animal rights activists haven't done, and nothing so different from what undercover journalists have been doing since the slavery debate,' said attorney Heather Hacker.
The investigative report, initiated and funded by the university itself, provides official cover for the University of Pittsburgh to carry on with its grisly research.