Charges against the company behind the deaths of 2400 sheep aboard a live export vessel have been dropped, fuelling calls for a swifter end to the trade.
Shocking footage leaked by a crew member showed the animals dying from heat stress while being transported to the Middle East on board the Awassi Express in August 2017.
Perth-based company Emanuel Exports and two of its directors were charged under Animal Welfare laws, with former managing director Graham Daws and ex-director Michael Stanton pleading not guilty.
All charges against them were discontinued in the Perth Magistrates Court on Tuesday.
The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, which led the prosecution, said in a statement it had decided it was not in the public interest to continue the case.
Among other factors, it said it had taken into account a subsequent ban on live exports during the northern hemisphere summer.
"(The) decision took into account the complexity of the case, the public cost of a trial, the (penalty) already incurred by the company and changes to operating practices made by the company to prevent similar incidents occurring in the future," the department said.
Federal Labor member for Fremantle Josh Wilson called the outcome disappointing and said the community would be bewildered about why there were no consequences from the incident.
"How is it that thousands of sheep can be killed by heat stress and drown in their own waste and yet no-one is held accountable?" he said.
"All the more reason for us to proceed with a sensibly managed transition out of the unnecessary and cruel live sheep trade."
Labor has pledged to end the trade, despite the objections of a large number of farmers' groups.
Activist group Alliance for Animals said a complete ban promised by the Albanese government should be implemented as soon as possible.
Policy director Jed Goodfellow said the public deserved a proper answer over why the prosecution had been abandoned.
"Australians were shocked to their core by the horrific scenes of sheep gasping for air while being trampled and dying in beds of their own faeces while sailing into the stifling heat of the Middle East," he said.
"The fact that the exporter responsible for such profound suffering will not be held accountable is an affront to justice.
"It's essentially saying that if a defendant has deep pockets, they'll get a free pass on alleged breaches of the law."
