Oprah: Chimp Victim Charla Nash (Warning Graphic Pictures) Says She Doesn't Remember Attack (2024)

FAQs

Why did Travis the chimpanzee attack? ›

Herold speculated that Travis was being protective of her and attacked Nash because she had a different hairstyle, was driving a different car and held a stuffed toy in front of her face to get the chimp's attention.

After a chimpanzee savagely ripped her apart, Charla Nash was given a new lease on life when doctors offered her the chance to undergo a face transplant.

After a 200-pound chimp mauled off parts of her face and hands, leaving her permanently blind, Charla Nash achieved the unthinkable by undergoing a successful face transplant about five years ago.

Charla Nash's injuries were overwhelming. Travis had bitten or torn away her eyelids, nose, jaw, lips, and most of her scalp. He'd broken nearly all the bones of her facial structure. He'd fully removed one of her hands and virtually all of the other.

Toxicology reports confirmed Sandra's statement that she had given him Xanax-laced tea the day of the attack, which could have exacerbated his aggression.

This is the story of the woman left disfigured for life by the primate. Travis the chimpanzee enjoyed a unique life, living almost like a human. But tragedy struck in 2009, when the primate mauled a woman in a fit of rage, tearing off her hands and face.

The strength of one chimpanzee is estimated to be equivalent to the strength of 5 men.

Lucy (1964–1987) was a chimpanzee owned by the Institute for Primate Studies in Oklahoma, and raised by Maurice K. Temerlin, a psychotherapist and professor at the University of Oklahoma and his wife, Jane.

"I will now be able to do things I once took for granted," Nash said in the statement. "I will be able to smell. I will be able to eat normally.

Nash said she doesn't remember the day of the attack, but she always avoided her friend Sandra Herold's pet chimp named Travis. Nash said that she was previously attacked by Travis and was scared of him. "He ripped a whole hunk of hair in the back of my head and I was crying," said Nash.

Why did Charla Nash sue the state? ›

Travis the chimp went crazy in 2009 and tore off Charla Nash's face and hands. Now, she wants to sue Connecticut for $150 million because, she says, the state was negligent.

Wild chimpanzees are usually fearful of humans and will keep their distance. However, there have been recorded incidents of chimpanzees attacking and killing people. This usually happens when humans move into and destroy chimpanzee habitats, reducing their access to food.

However, to Stamford officer Frank Chiafari, the incident was just as disturbing as if he had killed a human – and he opened up to the New York Times on the subject for the first time. Travis the 14-year-old chimp spent his life living more like a human than an animal.

For 14 years, Sandra Herold raised her chimp Travis like a son, treating him to the finest foods, dressing him in human clothes, and even teaching him to ride a bike. But her love for Travis would go on to haunt her in many ways.

In December 2009, Connecticut state prosecutors decided not to hold Herold criminally responsible for the attack, but a $50 million civil suit filed by the Nash family is still pending.