Some ex-space chimps leaving lab

[Rutherfords]

Some ex-space chimps leaving lab WASHINGTON (AP) - Twenty-one chimpanzee veterans of the space program are headed for retirement. They will be moved from a research laboratory in New Mexico to a sanctuary in Florida under a court settlement with the Air Force. The Center for Captive Chimpanzee Care, which is building the sanctuary for the animals, sued the Air Force after it turned over 111 chimps to the Coulston Foundation lab last year. In September, the Agriculture Department accused the Alamogordo, N.M., facility of mistreating its 650 chimpanzees and forced it to give up 300 of them. The Boynton Beach, Fla.-based center, whose board includes renowned primatologist Jane Goodall, had unsuccessfully tried to obtain the Air Force chimps before filing its lawsuit. See full story