Elephants can't pursue release because they are not people, court rules 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.
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.
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.
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.
