NEW MEXICO JUDGE DISMISSES ANIMAL CRUELTY CHARGES AGAINST NIH CHIMP LAB OPERATOR ON LEGAL TECHNICALITY
IDA Urges Appeal, as Accused Hides Behind Legal Technicalities and NIH Whitewash to Evade Uncontroverted Evidence and Judgment of a Jury

Alamogordo, N.M. – In Defense of Animals (IDA) reacted strongly today to the decision by a New Mexico judge to dismiss on a legal technicality multiple counts of criminal animal cruelty filed against the contractor of a federally owned chimpanzee lab on Holloman Air Force Base. IDA praised Otero County District Attorney Scot Key for bringing the charges and urged the appeal of the case.

The unprecedented criminal charges accuse National Institutes of Health (NIH) contractor Charles River Laboratories of institutional negligence and criminal animal cruelty in the deaths of two chimpanzees and the near-death of a third. The D.A.’s independent criminal investigation found that it was "standard practice" for Charles River to leave critically ill chimpanzees in the "care" of security guards after trained animal care staff repeatedly walked off, clocking out at the end of the workday around 4:00.

Of the two who died, Charles River deliberately removed life support and then left Rex, who was unconscious and vomiting; Ashley had been bleeding and exhibiting signs of shock. Both were found dead by security guards; Rex had vomited up into his mouth and down his trachea. Topsy, the third chimpanzee, nearly bled to death before belated veterinary care was given.

At a hearing last week, Judge Jerry H. Ritter accepted Charles River’s contention that it was engaged in the "practice of veterinary medicine" in all three cases, and dismissed the charges. New Mexico’s cruelty statute exempts the practice of veterinary medicine. He ruled in favor of the D.A. on two other legal technicalities, and took under advisement three others: state jurisdiction, federal preemption of the state cruelty statute, and the company’s contention that it is exempt because it is a federal contractor.

"We now know that for Charles River and the NIH, the 'practice of veterinary medicine' constitutes intentional and repeated abandonment of critically ill chimpanzees to once-per-hour observation by security guards," said IDA president Elliot M. Katz, DVM.

Katz said that Charles River and the NIH are now accountable to no one, no matter how horrific the cruelty or how much their conduct violates simple human decency. Ordinarily the U.S. Department of Agriculture would have jurisdiction over research laboratories; however, they have no jurisdiction over NIH labs.

Katz noted that in all three cases, Charles River never denied the facts alleged by the D.A. in the criminal charges, and that the judge’s decision did not deny the merits of the case.

"We will not allow Charles River and the NIH to hide from the cold facts of their cruel acts, which they have done everything to evade and obscure," concluded Katz. "We urge D.A. Key to appeal this decision. It is essential that Charles River and the NIH be held accountable for this unconscionable cruelty and their violation of the most basic standards of simple human decency."

For more information, please visit http://wwwNIHChimpCruelty.com