No DNA test for Eli

SARASOTA - A baby chimpanzee at the center of a custody dispute will not undergo a DNA test to determine its parentage, a judge ruled Friday after a two-hour hearing.

Attorneys for Michael Casey, the man who said he believes Eli the chimpanzee belongs to him, told reporters the case is far from over.

The 11-month-old primate reached out for his current owner, Gini Valbuena, as she left the courthouse. Eli, wearing a diaper and draped in a blanket with cheetah spots, was not allowed in the courtroom.

During the hearing, Casey said Eli was born at a primate refuge he owned for 20 years in Festus, Mo., until a divorce from his wife, Connie, divvied up the couple's holdings. The chimp was taken from his property in violation of a court order, Michael Casey said.

He told Judge Charlie Roberts that Eli looks like some of the chimpanzees he used to raise.

"My belief is the blood is the answer," Casey told the court.

Valbuena said she was raising Eli for a pair of trainers in California after Eli's mother rejected the chimp at birth.

Casey's attorney, Jason Wandner, asked Roberts to order Valbuena to make Eli available for a DNA test. Valbuena's attorney, Richard Buckle, said he couldn't find any histories of DNA testing on apes or of ape custody cases.

Buckle argued that Casey had no proof his ex-wife owned or sold Eli. It all boiled down to money, Buckle said, because Eli is worth $50,000 to $65,000.

Casey said he wasn't trying to find out Eli's paternity for quick cash.

"It's not so much monetary interest," he said. "I don't intend to sell Eli. I want to have Eli. There were 28 chimpanzees at issue during the divorce. I received three, and I believe Eli is mine."

After he denied the DNA test, the judge told Casey that he and his attorney can raise the issue again if they get more information on Eli and expert testimony on ape DNA.