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68:. Tanzanian poachers had killed his mother when he was one day old, leaving him an orphan. St. James and LaDonna did not have any children, so they raised him as their own. He lived with them in their home, wore clothes, was toilet trained, and took showers. He participated in their wedding; LaDonna said he acted as a "a combination of flower-thrower and
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had been frightened by an electric shock that occurred while his cage was being repaired. Local police were called, and several officers were required to restrain him. While resisting recapture, he dented a police car and mauled a police officer's hand. The police officer required medical treatment and subsequent rehabilitation costing
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her. A second chimp was also loose. The two young chimps involved in the attack were named Buddy and Ollie. Two female ones named Susie and Bones also escaped from their cages during the attack; they were not involved in the assault on St. James and LaDonna and were recaptured five hours later. Moe did not participate in the attack.
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In 1977, when Moe was 10 years old, he bit a woman, injuring her finger. A lawsuit followed, but the case was dismissed. In the 1990s, Moe was housed in a 10 ft (3.0 m) by 12 ft (3.7 m) enclosure at St. James and LaDonna's home. On August 16, 1998, he escaped. They claimed that he
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for the party. LaDonna said Moe clapped his hands with joy when he saw them. She cut a piece of cake for him and then, when she went to cut a second piece, she noticed another chimp had gotten out of its cage. It rushed up to her and bit her thumb off. St. James pushed her under the table to protect
83:
On
September 2, 1999, a visitor came to see Moe. St. James and LaDonna claim that they warned her not to attempt to approach his cage, but she extended her hand into it, and he bit her. St. James and LaDonna claimed that she wore red nail polish, and Moe had mistaken her nails for his favorite
211:. Construction workers reported they had seen him at a home near Jungle Exotics; other witnesses spotted him heading towards a mountain. St. James and LaDonna hired a helicopter to do flyovers in an attempt to flush him out of hiding, and authorities searched the
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On March 3, 2005, while at the sanctuary on one of their frequent visits with Moe, St. James and LaDonna were attacked by two young male chimpanzees named Buddy and Ollie: they had escaped their enclosures. In the ensuing
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to get the city of West Covina to honor their 2002 settlement which required it to purchase a home for them in
Baldwin Park so that they could reunite with Moe. In 2007, the court ruled that West Covina should pay them
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95:, an animal sanctuary. St. James and LaDonna fought to regain custody of him, but were unsuccessful. In 2002, they filed a civil rights lawsuit against West Covina; the city ultimately agreed to pay them
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because it did not fulfill their obligations under the 2002 settlement, pay them $ 300 per month towards covering the costs of Moe's housing, and covering travel expenses for their visits to him.
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and two slits in the middle of his face where his nose was. He and LaDonna were uninsured, but initially decided not to sue Animal Haven, before reversing course and filing a lawsuit by 2009.
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Buddy and Ollie destroyed a majority of St. James' fingers, his left foot, most of his buttocks, both testicles, part of his torso, and parts of his face including his nose and lips. A
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St. James and LaDonna visited Moe regularly at the animal sanctuary. In 2003, the animal sanctuary experienced licensing problems, so he was transferred to Animal Haven Ranch, near
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Buddy and Ollie attacked St. James simultaneously; one initially attacked his face, the other attacked his foot. The sanctuary owner's son-in-law, Mark
Carruthers, retrieved a
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In 2006, the year following the attack, St. James and LaDonna placed a sign in their front yard that read "Free Moe". They also went to
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and shot Buddy in the head. Meanwhile, Ollie dragged St. James' body down a walkway. Carruthers followed and shot him too.
48:, LaDonna lost her thumb, and St. James was brutally mauled, resulting in permanent disfigurement and missing extremities.
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On March 3, 2005, St. James and LaDonna came to Animal Haven Ranch to celebrate Moe's 39th birthday. They brought him a
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St. James spent six months in the hospital recovering from the attack, including a period of time when he was in a
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Moe disappeared in the summer of 2008. He had been living at a ranch for performing animals, Jungle
Exotics, in
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named Moe, whom they treated as if he were a child. After Moe bit several people, the city of
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St. James and LaDonna adopted a chimpanzee named Moe in 1967, not long after his birth in
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Saving animals from ourselves : a manifesto for healing the divine animal within
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40:. St. James and LaDonna waged a long, unsuccessful legal battle to recover him.
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711:"Man who lost face in '05 mauling knows hell of new chimpanzee victim"
646:
Bonobo handshake : a memoir of love and adventure in the Congo
55:
177:
296:. Esquire Magazine. Archived from the original on July 27, 2022
615:"Chimpanzee attack probed Sanctuary visitor severely mauled"
180:. Between 2005 and 2009, St. James Davis underwent over 60
88:. She sued, and St. James and LaDonna settled the lawsuit.
555:"California chimp attack leaves man in critical condition"
649:. New York, New York, U.S.A.: Penguin Publishing Group.
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next to his enclosure. They brought toys, candy hearts,
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driver St. James Davis and his wife, LaDonna, had a pet
809:
YouTube Video - St. James tells the story of Moe (2009)
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West Covina officials seized Moe and relocated him to
340:
Pierson, David; Landsberg, Mitchell (March 5, 2005).
684:"Year After chimp Attack Man facing more surgeries"
246:"2 Cities Can't Get the Hang of Chimp's Situation"
60:West Covina "Honorary Citizen" certificate for Moe
743:. The Bakersfield Californian. January 30, 2007.
252:. Archived from the original on February 14, 2023
581:"Experts not surprised by gruesome chimp attack"
314:: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (
270:: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (
456:. San Bernardino, California. June 30, 2008.
8:
529:"Mauling victim wants to be with his chimp"
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18:2005 chimpanzee attack in California, US
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839:March 2005 events in the United States
741:"Man in chimp attack to receive money"
617:. The Boston Globe. Associated Press.
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164:attack." St. James was transported to
747:from the original on January 20, 2023
721:from the original on January 25, 2023
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561:from the original on January 20, 2023
535:from the original on January 20, 2023
531:. Tahoe Daily Tribune. May 17, 2006.
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682:Burger, David (September 13, 2016).
342:"A Primate Party Gone Horribly Awry"
292:Schapiro, Rich (November 11, 2009).
166:Loma Linda University Medical Center
160:who arrived said, "It looked like a
123:sanctuary that housed six primates.
849:Animal attacks in the United States
709:Dillon, Nancy (February 22, 2008).
829:History of Kern County, California
786:from the original on March 3, 2023
663:from the original on March 3, 2023
450:"Search for Moe the chimp ongoing"
244:Mia Dimassa, Cara (May 10, 2002).
107:, where they could live with Moe.
14:
498:Argetsinger, Amy (May 23, 2005).
419:Hillard, Gloria (July 14, 2008).
119:. It was a 22-acre (8.9 ha)
686:. The Bakersfield Californian.
421:"The Case Of The Missing Chimp"
215:, but he has never been found.
772:. Bloomington, IN: iUniverse.
423:. All Things Considered. NPR.
294:"The Worst Story I Ever Heard"
213:San Bernardino National Forest
103:for a home purchase in nearby
22:NASCAR K&N Pro Series West
1:
613:Curtis, Kim (March 5, 2005).
32:seized and placed him in an
557:. CBC News. March 4, 2005.
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502:. NBC News. Archived from
138:, and a raspberry-filled
105:Baldwin Park, California
766:Harvey, Andrew (2019).
643:Woods, Vanessa (2011).
385:"Too Close For Comfort"
225:List of individual apes
117:Bakersfield, California
38:Bakersfield, California
30:West Covina, California
61:
130:and were seated at a
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585:Lewiston Sun Journal
715:New York Daily News
506:on January 20, 2023
500:"The animal within"
391:. August 14, 2006.
93:Wildlife WayStation
834:2005 in California
197:Pomona, California
168:after the attack.
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587:. March 6, 2005.
346:Los Angeles Times
250:Los Angeles Times
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184:. He has a
148:.45 caliber
101:US$ 225,000
97:US$ 100,000
78:US$ 250,000
818:Categories
231:References
202:US$ 32,000
140:sheet cake
52:Background
26:chimpanzee
310:cite news
266:cite news
182:surgeries
172:Aftermath
158:paramedic
121:nonprofit
784:Archived
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589:Archived
559:Archived
533:Archived
458:Archived
425:Archived
393:Archived
389:ABC News
350:Archived
219:See also
151:revolver
86:licorice
70:best man
66:Tanzania
454:The Sun
776:
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111:Attack
46:attack
99:plus
36:near
792:2023
774:ISBN
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
