An animal rights organization is urging the Hawaii Supreme Court to mandate the release of two elephants from the Honolulu Zoo. This legal battle risks impacting hunting rights for gun owners.
The Nonhuman Rights Project (NhRP) and attorneys for the city and county of Honolulu are set to present their arguments to Hawaii’s highest court on November 9, as reported by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF). Lawrence Keane, NSSF’s senior vice president and general counsel, pointed out that while this case centers on relocating just two elephants, its ramifications could resonate across the country.
Keane expressed concern that if courts start applying animal personhood concepts to other species, it could empower anti-hunting activists to challenge established wildlife management practices under the guise of individual animal rights. “That’s a risk that hunters and wildlife agencies really can’t afford to overlook,” he wrote.
NhRP initially filed the case in 2023 but faced a setback in circuit court, which resulted in an appeal to the Intermediate Court of Appeals. That court upheld the lower ruling in January, indicating that the requests made by the animal rights group were unfeasible.
“The term ‘person’ does not require a definition; its plain meaning does not encompass animals,” Presiding Judge Keith K. Hiraoka noted in the ruling, referencing other unsuccessful attempts by NhRP.
In a separate instance in July, a Hawaii Supreme Court justice criticized the U.S. Supreme Court in a criminal appeal involving questionable forensic evidence, claiming they only recognized “white.” Associate Justice Todd Eddins wrote, “The Roberts Court sees only white; it fails to acknowledge who the Equal Protection Clause was intended to protect.” This statement was part of a lengthy opinion against the backdrop of a different case.
Additionally, in 2024, the Hawaii Supreme Court referenced the “spirit of Aloha” to uphold a gun regulation facing a Second Amendment challenge, which was met with criticism from U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Samuel Alito in June. Alito asserted that “the Second Amendment has the same meaning in all parts of the United States,” responding to the Hawaii ruling, which the Supreme Court allowed to remain intact on procedural grounds. “It can’t yield to ‘the spirit of Aloha’ in Hawaii, just as it wouldn’t yield to the spirit of the Big Apple or the Windy City. It applies uniformly across our states,” he added.
