Court to Decide If Chimpanzees Have Right to Freedom

The rights of seven chimpanzees, currently behind bars at the DeYoung Family Zoo in Wallace, Michigan, is being heard this week by the Michigan Court of Appeals. At issue is whether the chimps should be granted habeas corpus, a protection against unlawful imprisonment.

The chimpanzees’ cause is taken up by the Project for Nonhuman Rights, which first brought the suit to the Menominee County Circuit Court in 2023, but the case was dismissed when the court found that the relevant law’s use of the word “person” did not apply to nonhumans.

In its appeal filed in January 2024, the project argues that Michigan common law — not a statute that includes the word “person” — should determine the outcome of the case. That, along with the autonomy of chimpanzees, is what is under consideration by the appellate court.

The DeYoung Family Zoo houses (or imprisons, depending on one’s point of view) deer, bears, barnyard animals, camels, kangaroos, and other critters, some of which are made available for hands-on encounters. The chimpanzees, says Nonhuman Rights, are kept in small enclosures, do not get enough stimulation, and are deprived of fresh air and sunshine, especially in the Michigan winter.

“They’re suffering, as our experts tell us, devastating physical and psychological harm,” attorney Jake Davis testified. “They’re likely exhibiting what’s called stereotypical behaviors. That’s uninhibited rocking and swaying because basically your mind is going crazy.”

The project has enlisted support in affidavits from experts in chimpanzee behavior and cognition, including that of the late Jane Goodall, who wrote in 2023, “There is ample proof from studies of chimpanzee behavior, both in the wild and in captivity, that chimpanzees are autonomous beings with a highly complex cognitive nature, which can be illustrated by their ability to perform complex tasks.”

The court is now pondering the fate of the chimps, a decision that might impact similar cases for animal rights. Judges tend to be wary of where such expansions of nonhuman rights will lead.

“You're asking for something fairly extraordinary,” said appellate judge Brock Swartzle. “How extraordinary are you willing to go? Elephants, dolphins, chimpanzees, dogs, cats. Where do we draw the line?”

You can watch the court hearing here. And you can donate to the chimps’ legal defense here.

Photo credit: Nonhuman Rights Project