PETA to erect billboard for cows killed after trucker allegedly fell asleep & crashed

An animal rights group says that they plan to erect a billboard in honor of several cows that died in a single vehicle crash in New York last week.

On Wednesday, November 18, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) announced plans for a memorial billboard near the scene of a livestock hauler crash that killed multiple cows.

The billboard will encourage people to go vegan with the slogan, “I’m me, not meat.”

The crash occurred around 3:20 a.m. on November 13 in Virgil, New York.

According to a news release from the Cortland County Sheriff’s Office, 26 year old truck driver Eli Hershberger was hauling a load of 40 cows southbound on I-81 when he fell asleep behind the wheel.

Police say the truck left the interstate and veered into the center median eventually overturning and coming to a stop on its side along an embankment.

Hershberger suffered only minor injuries.

Five cows died from injuries sustained in the crash.

Police say that Hershberger was issued a citation for driving across hazard markings.