A court has ruled that five elephants being held in a Colorado zoo do not have the legal right to pursue their release, because they are not human.
An animal rights group brought a lawsuit on behalf of the elephants from Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs, using a legal process known as habeas corpus.
A writ of habeas corpus – Latin for “you may have the body”‘ – is a legal manoeuvre which requires a court to examine the legality of a detention.
The Nonhuman Rights Project (NRP), which took the case to court, had argued the elephants, born in the wild in Africa, have shown signs of brain damage because the zoo is essentially “a prison” for such intelligent and social creatures, known to roam for miles a day.
Their hope was the court would rule in their favour and pave the way for the mammals to be sent to an elephant sanctuary instead.
But the zoo said moving the elephants and potentially placing them with new animals would be cruel at their age, possibly causing unnecessary stress.
It added they are not used to being in larger herds and, based on the zoo’s observations, the elephants don’t have the skills or desire to join one.
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The court concluded the “majestic” animals – named Missy, Kimba, Lucky, LouLou and Jambo – were not covered by the laws the rights group was pointing to.
“The legal question here boils down to whether an elephant is a person,” the court said in its ruling.
“And because an elephant is not a person, the elephants here do not have standing to bring a habeas corpus claim.”
In a statement after the ruling, the zoo said it was pleased with the outcome, but “disappointed that it ever came to this”.
It accused the NRP, which has previously attempted the same lawsuit with several other zoos, of “abusing court systems” to fundraise.
“It seems their real goal is to manipulate people into donating to their cause by incessantly publicising sensational court cases with relentless calls for supporters to donate,” the zoo said.
The NRP said the latest ruling “perpetuates a clear injustice” and predicted future courts would reject the idea that only humans have a right to liberty.
“As with other social justice movements, early losses are expected as we challenge an entrenched status quo that has allowed Missy, Kimba, Lucky, LouLou, and Jambo to be relegated to a lifetime of mental and physical suffering,” it said in a statement.