PETA Statement re Elephant Escape

For Immediate Release:
April 16, 2024

Contact:
Sara Groves 202-483-7382

An elderly elephant, Viola, who escaped from Jordan World Circus today was supplied by Carson & Barnes Circus, which has been cited for more than 100 violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act. She has escaped at least twice before—in 2010 and in 2014 —and in 2021, a PETA investigation revealed that she was being forced to perform daily despite having chronically swollen feet and signs of other ailments that impacted her rear legs. Below, please find a statement from PETA Foundation Director of Captive Animal Welfare Debbie Metzler regarding Viola’s most recent escape.

Viola’s desperate break for freedom follows decades of abuse and involuntary servitude at the hands of Carson & Barnes Circus, which forces her to perform grueling, painful tricks and has been caught on video electroshocking elephants and beating them with a sharp, steel-tipped bullhook. PETA has submitted an urgent complaint to federal authorities over the circus’s failure to protect Viola and the public from this frightened animal’s attempts to flee her weapon-wielding handler and urges everyone to help elephants like Viola by refusing to buy a ticket to any circus that still forces them to perform.

PETA’s complaint to the U.S. Department of Agriculture requests that the agency investigate Carson & Barnes Circus, hold it and any other responsible parties accountable to the fullest extent of the law, and ensure that Viola is thoroughly examined for injuries that she may have sustained during her escape.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.