A chimpanzee in upstate New York lost its bid for habeas corpus.

Lawyers for "Tommy the Chimp" sought habeas corpus -- protection against illegal imprisonment -- in an attempt to have the chimpanzee freed from the cage in which it is kept at Circle L. Trailer Sales in upstate New York. Lawyers had argued that Tommy be regarded as a "complex autonomous legal person with the fundamental legal right not to be imprisoned."

In a unanimous ruling, five judges of the state's Supreme Court Appellate Division declined the request. Judge Karen Peters wrote that an "incapability to bear any legal responsibilities and societal duties...renders it inappropriate to confer upon chimpanzees the legal rights -- such as the fundamental right to liberty protected by writ of habeas corpus -- that have been afforded to human beings."

The Nonhuman Rights Project, which represented Tommy, disagrees with the decision, stating that the court "ignores the fact that the common law is supposed to change in light of new scientific discoveries, changing experiences, and changing ideas of what is right or wrong."

—Source: The Wall Street Journal