Crustaceans considered insects for purposes of animal cruelty laws

[rhiandmoi]

So over the holidays a friend of mine mentioned that in the US crustaceans such as crabs, lobsters, crawdads, etc are considered insects for purposes of animal cruelty which is how it is legal to boil them alive.

I thought this was crazy.

First of all in the US we don't usually eat insects. AFAIK We don't boil insects alive even when we do eat them. So there wouldn't be any sort established "It's ok to boil insects alive" regulations that it would be easier to say "Crabs are insects" rather than "It's ok to boil crustaceans alive".

Now there is some chance that he is right, because he does work more closely with fisheries and wildlife people than I do, but I can't get over how crazy it sounds. So far my google-fu has failed me, so I am hoping that someone knows US animal cruelty laws and can tell me that Crustaceans are Crustaceans, even for purposes of animal cruelty laws.