Cincinnati police are investigating whether to bring charges against the child’s parents, while authorities are also considering action against the zoo.
Advertisement
“We continue to praise God for His grace and mercy, and to be thankful to the Cincinnati Zoo for their actions taken to protect our child”, the family said in the statement.
Hamilton County Prosecutor Joseph Deters said in a statement police would confer with his office after they had looked into the matter.
Michelle Gregg could face criminal charges once the review is complete.
Zoo director Thane Maynard said that using tranquilizers instead of lethal force would have taken several minutes to subdue the 17-year-old gorilla, and that darting the animal could have set off a violent reaction against the child.
“There’s risks with everything, so looking at those risks and identifying them and mitigating them is the most important thing we can do”, he said.
The incident resulted in the shooting and killing of a gorilla to ensure the boy’s safety, zoo officials said.
“Apparently they pack an fantastic punch, and if you hit it with that surely it’ll knock it over… or maybe aggravated it”, he said. He referred us to Terry Maple, who co-authored a book with Gingrich in 2007 about the environment.
Lykins has a message for those looking to put punishment on the mother, she says they should realize that seeing her child spend nearly 10 minutes in the same space as a 450-pound gorilla is punishment enough.
During the 50-second call, Gregg told her son repeatedly to remain calm.
“She was putting kids in the strollers – there were four or five kids total – and getting ready to leave the exhibit”. He’s dragging him from one end to the other.
Goodall noted that the death is “a devastating loss to the zoo, and to the gorillas”.
The incident has spawned numerous online petitions.
“(State Sen. Cecil) Thomas is looking into whether OH needs a law to impose fines or criminal charges on anyone who causes the death of an endangered animal due to negligence. Cuoco posted a photo of Harambe expressing her heartbreak over his death, but confessed her relief that the gorilla was no longer living in captivity.
Advertisement
“We’re going to keep her in the loop”, Saunders said.
