Breaking News: IDA Investigation Leads to Criminal Charges Against World's
Largest Lab Supplier
For the first time in U.S. history, criminal charges for multiple counts of
animal cruelty have been filed against an animal research laboratory for its
operator's alleged institutional neglect and abandonment of chimpanzees.
The unprecedented complaint, filed by
Otero County, New Mexico District Attorney Scot Key, alleges that negligence
surrounding the deaths of the chimpanzees Rex and Ashley, and the near-death
of Topsy, at the Alamogordo Primate Facility (APF) constitute criminal
animal cruelty.
District Attorney Key's investigation of possible criminal wrongdoing in the
treatment of chimpanzees at the APF was prompted by IDA, which provided his
office with evidence from its network of whistleblowers indicating grave and
willful negligence on the part of APF management.
Based on whistleblower information, IDA informed the D.A. that APF officials
repeatedly left injured or dying chimpanzees in the "care" of untrained
maintenance/security workers. Ashley had been bleeding much of the day she
died after suffering a wound to her "sex skin" and exhibited possible signs
of shock before being abandoned by the APF animal care staff. Nine months
later, Topsy suffered a similar wound, and almost bled to death after APF
animal care staff left the lab. Rex, who had been ill for months, was
unconscious and vomiting the day he died. APF senior staff ordered that
animal caretakers stop the suctioning of
vomit from his mouth before leaving; Rex was found dead hours later, with
vomit in his mouth and trachea.
Please visit
http://www.nihchimpcruelty.com/index.html
for more
information on the campaign.
Click here to read the story in the Boston Globe:
http://www.boston.com/business/markets/articles/2004/09/10/charles_river_charged
_after_deaths_of_chimps/
.
What You Can Do
* Contact your elected representatives in Washington to express your outrage
at the expenditure of our tax dollars on this alleged chimpanzee cruelty.
Demand that the NIH immediately terminate all federal funding of Charles
River Laboratories and immediately turn over custody of all chimpanzees on
Holloman Air Force Base to a reputable, non-governmental sanctuary for
permanent retirement.
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC 20510
See
http://www.senate.gov for specific contact
information for
your Senators
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515
See
http://www.house.gov for
specific contact information on
your Congressperson
Contact New Mexico Attorney General Patricia Madrid to thank her for helping
to lead the effort to amend the state's animal
cruelty statute to hold research institutions accountable for the treatment
of animals in their laboratories. Tell Ms. Madrid
you are aware that without her efforts, these historic charges against
Charles River Laboratories for alleged cruelty to
chimpanzees would not have been possible.
The Honorable Patricia Madrid
Attorney General - New Mexico
407 Galisteo Street
Bataan Memorial Building, Room 260
Santa Fe, NM 87501
Phone:(505) 827-6000
Fax: (505) 827-5826
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