DENVER — The Colorado Supreme Court will be hear both sides of the argument if five elephants at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo have rights and if they should be freed to go to a sanctuary.
Last year, the Nonhuman Rights Project (NhRP) filed alawsuit against the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo (CMZoo) and against Bob Chastain, CMZoo CEO and President. The lawsuit was dismissed in district court but NhRP appealed to the state Supreme Court.
"We are so thankful that they felt this case was important enough to hear it," said Courtney Fern, NhRP Director of Government Relations and Campaigns. "So we're very excited and optimistic about the hearing on October 24."
Driving by the Colorado Supreme Court on Sunday afternoon, a group carried signs with picture of elephants, called out chants to free them, and left behind messages in chalk. These animal activists were with NhRP arguing elephants at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo have legal rights and should be freed.
"So elephants suffer in captivity, they should never be held captive and so we hope the with the Supreme Court that they will right this wrong and they will recognize elephants right to liberty and really demonstrate that the law is following up with science and what many people know to be true," said Fern.
CMZoo provided a statement to Denver7, saying: "Because our community is smart and capable of seeing through their sensationalism, let's lay out how absurd their legal position is and let's call this what it is... a fundraising act playing off people's love of animals, complete with a publicity stunt in Denver this weekend."
Additionally in the statement, CMZoo expressed their surprise over the NhRP choosing to attack their zoo saying, "We have consistently ranked as a top-five zoo in the nation by popular vote. We just celebrated raising $5 million for frontline conservation efforts, including over a million dollars for African elephants. Our national recognition as a leader in animal care and conservation is likely what drew their attention to us."
Denver7 asked why the NhRP specifically chose this lawsuit against the CMZoo and their elephants.
"We came to Colorado because Colorado has a very favorable case law for the types of cases that we file and the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, the elephants there are in great need of rescue, they are five wild born female African elephants who are suffering greatly," Fern said.
In the statement from CMZoo, it referenced concerns over granting habeas corpus to any animal.
"We hope Colorado isn’t the place that sets the slippery slope in motion of whether your beloved and well-cared-for dog or cat should have habeas corpus and would be required to ‘go free,’ at the whim of someone else’s opinion of them," the statement read.
Looking toward the future home of these elephants, Fern along with Mickey Pardo, an elephant biologist, both emphasized why these animals should be instead placed in a sanctuary.
"I just don't think that we could justify keeping animals that are so emotionally complex and so intelligent in a captive environment when we know that their needs aren’t being met," said Pardo.
However, in the statement from the CMZoo, the zoo explained, "Suggesting they’d be better off at a sanctuary is simply incorrect. Popular opinions about what’s considered best for elephants in general are not what’s best for Jambo, Missy, LouLou, Kimba or Lucky."
The Colorado Supreme Court will hear this case on October 24. Both sides have expressed they are prepared.
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In November, Colorado voters will decide whether to give $350 million in state funding to local law enforcement agencies across the state and a one-time $1 million payment to families of first responders killed in the line of duty.
