The former “Baywatch” actor said she joined activists at Ridglan Farms as officials investigate the removal of dogs from the property.
BLUE MOUNDS, WI — Former “Baywatch” actor Alexandra Paul is speaking publicly after her arrest at a Wisconsin beagle breeding facility, saying she joined an effort to remove dogs from Ridglan Farms as part of what she called a mission to rescue animals used in research.
Paul’s comments came days after authorities said dozens of protesters entered the Ridglan property in the town of Blue Mounds on Sunday morning, leading to multiple arrests and an ongoing investigation. The case has drawn national attention because of Paul’s celebrity profile, the long-running criticism of the facility by animal welfare groups and the fact that Ridglan had already agreed to give up its Wisconsin breeding license by July 1, 2026, after an animal welfare investigation.
Dane County sheriff’s deputies and officers from several other agencies responded at about 8:30 a.m. Sunday after 50 to 60 protesters entered the property without permission, according to the sheriff’s office. Authorities said some activists broke into the facility and began removing dogs. Paul, 62, was among those taken into custody. In an interview aired Wednesday by Inside Edition, Paul said she had been part of an effort focused on getting beagles out of the facility outside Madison. The interview framed her comments as a response to the release of her mugshot and the public attention that followed her arrest. Sheriff Kalvin Barrett said the people arrested had been cooperative and respectful, even as he stressed that law enforcement would respond when protests crossed into unlawful activity.
Authorities initially said about 20 people were arrested, though later local reporting put the number at 27. The sheriff’s office publicly identified several of those arrested, including Wayne Hsiung, 44, of New York; Aditya V. Aswani, 29, of Brooklyn; and Dean F. Wyrzykowski, 29, of San Francisco. Officials said Aswani was booked on a tentative burglary charge, while Hsiung and Wyrzykowski were booked on tentative criminal trespass charges. Paul has widely been reported as facing a misdemeanor trespassing allegation. Investigators also said two vehicles, burglary tools and other evidence were seized at the scene. The exact number of beagles taken from the property remains one of the details reported differently in public accounts. Law enforcement said some of the dogs were recovered and returned, but several remained unaccounted for as of the sheriff’s statement. Local television coverage, citing activists, said eight beagles were recovered by officers and sent back to Ridglan.
The clash has landed in a dispute that was already years in the making. Ridglan Farms, a USDA-licensed operation in Dane County, has long been a target of protest by animal-rights groups that say beagles there were bred for sale to laboratories and housed in poor conditions. State oversight of the facility became a larger story in 2025, when Wisconsin regulators pursued action after an animal welfare investigation. Under a settlement with the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, Ridglan agreed to surrender its state license to breed dogs by July 1, 2026. That agreement did not immediately shut down the site. Local reporting said the company would still be allowed to operate as a research facility unless other action followed. That distinction has become central to the latest protest: activists argue the deadline is too far away and leaves many dogs at risk in the meantime, while officials have said oversight of the site belongs to state and federal regulators.
Paul’s appearance in the story also fits a pattern in her public life. The actor, best known for playing Lt. Stephanie Holden on “Baywatch,” has been outspoken for years on animal rights, veganism and environmental issues. This is not her first arrest tied to activism. She was previously charged in California after participating in the removal of chickens from a transport truck in 2021, and she was later found not guilty in that case. Supporters describe her as a committed advocate willing to risk arrest in civil disobedience actions. Critics say her presence in high-profile rescues can blur the line between protest and criminal conduct. In this case, the record so far leaves open several key questions: how many dogs were removed, how many are still missing, whether more arrests or charges are coming and what evidence prosecutors may use if the case moves forward.
Officials have tried to separate the politics of animal research from the narrower legal issues now under review. Barrett said his office respects the strong feelings many people have about the beagles at Ridglan Farms and supports peaceful protest, but he said deputies must act when people enter private property without permission or take animals from the site. The sheriff’s office also noted the response happened in difficult weather conditions and involved officers from Mt. Horeb, Verona, Madison and the University of Wisconsin Police Department. As of Thursday, investigators had described the matter as ongoing and said more details could be released later. It was not immediately clear whether formal charges beyond tentative bookings had been filed against all of those arrested, or when prosecutors would make final charging decisions. That next step will likely determine whether the story remains a brief celebrity arrest item or grows into a longer legal fight over protest tactics and animal welfare claims.
The scene itself helps explain why the case has drawn such an emotional reaction. Video and social media posts circulated by activists showed people in light-colored protective suits carrying beagles away from the facility. News organizations that covered the aftermath described a tense but orderly law-enforcement response, with Paul becoming one of the most recognizable faces in the group because of her television career. In her public remarks, she cast the action not as a stunt but as part of a campaign to remove animals from a place she and other activists oppose. That message has resonated with supporters who see the dogs as symbols of a wider debate over animal testing. At the same time, the sheriff’s account and the seizure of tools and vehicles gave prosecutors and critics material to frame the event as more than a symbolic protest. Those dueling narratives now sit at the center of the public response: one side describing a rescue, the other describing an unlawful break-in.
For now, Paul’s arrest has added celebrity attention to a local case that was already under scrutiny because of Ridglan’s pending license surrender. The immediate milestone is the criminal investigation into the March 15 protest, followed by the separate July 1, 2026, deadline for Ridglan to give up its Wisconsin dog-breeding license.
Author note: Last updated March 19, 2026.