The Los Angeles County Superior Court has summarily denied the Nonhuman Rights Project’s latest habeas petition supposedly filed on behalf of two elephants. The reason: elephants are property, not persons.¹Or rather, these elephants are property. Of course, not all elephants are property. Wild elephants belong to no one, but that of course doesn’t make them persons. “Certainly, Billy and Tina should be treated with adequate care for their physical and mental wellbeing; but habeas corpus is not the enforcement vehicle. As civilized society’s knowledge expands and social norms surrounding animals evolve over time, the proper governmental branch to develop and harmonize animal welfare protections with society’s moral standing is the legislative one, not the judicial.”

Will this decision finally put the NhRP’s antics to rest? No, it will not. There is a whole fundraising infrastructure and professional network behind the effort to have elephants declared to be persons. The NhRP say it is “considering our next steps,” and if it doesn’t choose to appeal this one, it still has dozens of American jurisdictions left to burden with its absurd claims.

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  Or rather, these elephants are property. Of course, not all elephants are property. Wild elephants belong to no one, but that of course doesn’t make them persons.