Federal Lawsuit against Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus for Elephant Abuse

UPDATE (12/31/09):  The Animal Welfare Institute Continues Fight to Protect Endangered Elephants from Abuse by Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus

Statement Regarding Ruling in Ringling Bros. Case

Washington, D.C. (December 31, 2009) - Katherine Meyer, lead attorney for the plaintiffs in ASPCA, et al. v. Feld Entertainment, Inc. released the following statement on behalf of the plaintiffs regarding yesterday’s ruling by Judge Emmet Sullivan of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia:

"After a nearly ten year legal battle against the Ringling Bros. Circus regarding its mistreatment of endangered Asian elephants, a federal judge yesterday dismissed the case on grounds that the plaintiffs lacked ‘standing’ to pursue their claims.  Because he dismissed the case for a lack of jurisdiction, the Court did not address any of the extensive evidence presented at trial that showed Asian elephants kept on chains for much of their lives and hit with bull hooks, or the testimony of several renowned experts that these practices harm the elephants in many ways.  The case focuses on elephant mistreatment under the Endangered Species Act.  Had the Court addressed the merits of the case and ruled favorably for the plaintiffs, the Circus would have been required to stop its chaining and bull hook practices or obtain a special permit from the federal government to continue to engage in these practices."

The plaintiffs in the case include a former Ringling Bros. employee, The American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the Animal Welfare Institute, the Fund for Animals, and the Animal Protection Institute.  The plaintiffs are weighing their options regarding further proceedings.

Contact: Katherine Meyer, 202-588-5206, Meyer, Glitzenstein & Crystal,

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More than nine years ago, the Animal Welfare Institute, former Ringling Bros. employee, Tom Rider, and three other national animal welfare organizations filed suit against Ringling Bros. and its parent company, Feld Entertainment, Inc. for the mistreatment of Asian elephants under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Following countless legal challenges by the defendants, this groundbreaking lawsuit finally went to trial on Tuesday, February 3, 2009 before the Honorable Emmet Sullivan in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

The ESA prohibits any activity that "takes" a species listed as endangered. This includes any acts that "harm, wound, injure, harass, or kill" an endangered species—both those in the wild and in captivity.

Asian elephants, the only elephant species used by Ringling Bros., are currently listed by the ESA as endangered. Our lawsuit alleges that a number of routine practices by Ringling Bros. violate the Act, including: (1) the forceful use of bull hooks  to control, train and "discipline" the elephants and (2) the chaining of the elephants for most of the day and night.

We presented a wealth of evidence to support our claims, including video footage, photographs, eyewitness accounts, internal Ringling Bros. documents and investigative reports from the United States Department of Agriculture. Several former Ringling Bros. employees testified at trial about the elephant abuse they observed firsthand while working for the circus, and top experts in the field of elephant behavior from around the world testified on our behalf as well.

As part of our demonstration as to how Ringling Bros. mistreats its Asian elephants, we presented evidence involving the deaths of baby elephants who have died in the care of Ringling Bros. over the past few years.  Two-year-old Benjamin died when his trainer came after him with a bull hook.  Four-year-old Kenny was made to perform in three shows when he was extremely ill.  Eight-month-old Riccardo mysteriously broke both of his hind legs while "climbing on a round platform 19 inches high," and eleven-day-old Bertha died in the summer of 2005.  Her birth and death were never even announced by Ringling Bros.

Bull Hook

A "bull hook" or "ankus" is a two- to three-foot-long club or stick with a sharp metal or steel hook attached to the top. Ringling Bros. uses the bull hook repeatedly to beat, hit, stab and poke the elephants—especially when they are young—to control and "break" them so they perform as required. Although elephants are thought to have strong hides, their skin is extremely sensitive, particularly around the ears, face, trunk and head—places where they are most often struck with the bull hook. Elephant skin is so sensitive that these animals often throw dust or mud on their backs in the wild to protect themselves from sunburn. Once the elephants have been repeatedly abused bull hooks for long periods of time, just showing them the instrument often causes them enough distress to make them perform as desired.

We presented substantial evidence establishing that Ringling Bros. abuses its elephants with bull hooks, including eye-witness accounts of former Ringling Bros. employees who have witnessed vicious bull hook beatings of elephants and the daily hitting and hooking of these animals to make them stay in line, move in a particular direction or perform on cue. We also presented hours of video footage showing Ringling Bros. handlers hitting and hooking elephants with bull hooks, not to mention internal Ringling Bros. documents illustrating the abuse. In one such document, a Ringling Bros. animal behaviorist reported "an elephant dripping blood all over the arena floor during the show from being hooked."

Chaining

Ringling Bros. keeps the elephants in large, heavy-duty chains for most of their lives. One of the only times the elephants are not in chains is when they are displayed to the public, such as during the "Open House" and the actual performances. This has been confirmed by several former Ringling Bros. employees who say the elephants are not only chained continuously, but spend much of this time standing in their own feces and urine.

Internal Ringling Bros. train records show that the elephants are chained in boxcars for an average of more than 26 consecutive hours. When the circus travels from city to city, elephants are often chained for 60 to 70 hours at a time, with records showing some cases where the duration reaches 90 to 100 hours.

We are currently awaiting a decision in the case.  However, once we receive a decision, an appeal is likely.

Should you wish to make a donation to help us with our mounting legal bills in this ongoing legal effort, please send a check made payable to the Animal Welfare Institute and mail it to:

Animal Welfare Institute
900 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE             Washington, D.C. 20003

Note on check: Ringling Bros. Lawsuit

We also accept donations made by credit card (Visa or MasterCard). Should you wish to make a donation in this manner, please call the Animal Welfare Institute at 202-546-5292.

* The non-profit organizations and Tom Rider are being represented by the law firm of Meyer, Glitzenstein & Crystal, which is based in Washington, D.C.