ST. LOUIS – A court order issued Friday could lead to federal charges against Tonia Haddix, a Missouri woman at the center of high-profile legal battles and controversies over exotic animal ownership, specifically chimpanzees.
Tonia Haddix has recently gained notoriety as the focus of new viral HBO docuseries “Chimp Crazy,” which explores her actions and broader issues related to the private ownership of exotic animals. The docuseries is based on original reporting from FOX Files investigator Chris Hayes.
On Friday, a court order formally requested the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri to prosecute Haddix for criminal contempt of court.
The U.S. Department of Justice defines criminal contempt of court as “an act of disobedience or disrespect towards the judicial branch of the government, or an interference with its orderly process.”
For Haddix, this means she could face federal charges for, as outlined in Friday’s court order, repeatedly defying other court orders related to the care and transfer of chimpanzees, as well as sharing confidential information with a documentary film crew and allowing them to record.
However, whether Haddix will be prosecuted and possibly charged depends on the U.S. Attorney’s response to the court order. If the request is accepted, prosecution will follow. If not, the court may have an option to appoint another attorney to pursue a criminal contempt charge.
The court order requires the U.S. Attorney to accept or decline the request to prosecute Haddix for criminal contempt by Dec. 16, 2024. A decision has not been returned as of this story’s publication, so charges have not yet been filed.
Animal advocacy group PETA considers Friday’s court order a victory. PETA Foundation General Counsel Brittany Peet shared the following statement via a news release:
“The wheels of justice are turning for entitled Tonia Haddix, who has shown time and time again that she believes the justice system will simply indulge her as she defies court orders in her warped quest to exploit chimpanzees. This is a woman who either can’t or won’t abide by the law, and PETA thanks the court for making moves to hold her accountable with these much-deserved federal charges.”
Who is Tonia Haddix?
Haddix, who once dubbed herself the “Dolly Parton of chimps,” is an exotic animal owner from Festus, Missouri.
Haddix, the subject of HBO docuseries “Chimp Crazy,” has faced pushback from law enforcement and animal advocacy groups like PETA, which allege that many chimpanzees once under her care were unsafe and neglected.
Throughout the years, Haddix cared for the seven chimpanzees and bred them as talent for films and photoshoots, among other activities. These chimpanzees previously inhabited the Missouri Primate Foundation, a now-defunct animal breeding facility near Festus.
Haddix’s attachment to one chimpanzee, Tonka, sparked national attention in 2021. Tonka is a former animal movie star, appearing in films like the 1997 comedy Buddy. At some point, Haddix claimed that Tonka had died when she instead had him locked in her basement.
Before that, PETA and Haddix agreed to a consent decree in 2020 that would address concerns of neglect and allow Haddix to keep three of the seven chimpanzees, including Tonka, according to our news partners at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Later on, Haddix told FOX Files reporter Chris Hayes, “They’re not getting the chimps” in defiance of such terms.
Federal authorities eventually removed six chimps, all but Tonka, while responding to Festus in July 2021. Arrangements called to transfer the chimpanzees to a Florida animal sanctuary for treatment. At the time, Haddix stood by the assertion that Tonka was dead.
But nearly one whole year later, Tonka was found caged in Haddix’s basement in her Lake of the Ozarks-area home.
That discovery prompted a new lawsuit from PETA, which contended that Haddix and her husband concocted an elaborate hoax when claiming Tonka had died, lied under oath about text messages she sent about Tonka at a time she previously deemed the chimp dead and tried to bribe federal marshals ordered to prevent Haddix from euthanizing Tonka.
Just last year, a federal court ordered Haddix to pay more than $220,000 in attorneys’ fees and costs to PETA last year to end that lawsuit.
In 2022, amid pending prosecution, Haddix told FOX 2 that she was unable to talk on camera about the situation, but sent the following message: “I still stand on my promise to Tonka, and I would do anything to protect him from the evil clutches of PETA and the hell hole they placed him in. And that if the judicial system was just, he never would have left the only home he’s ever known.”
Tonka, now 32 years old, resides at the “Save The Chimps” sanctuary in Fort Pierce, Florida. There have been no reports of contact between Tonka and Haddix since both were split apart in 2022.
Meanwhile, just last year, Haddix and her husband Jerry Aswegan opened the Sunrise Beach Safari near the Lake of the Ozarks. The venue’s website says it is family-run and offers a petting zoo, pony rides, sloth encounters, and photo opportunities with animals.
Haddix and Aswegan opened the Sunrise Beach Safari after PETA filed a complaint to the U.S. Department of Agriculture in October 2022 to terminate both of their Animal Welfare Act licenses. The licenses allow them to operate the venue with exotic animals.
Haddix is also the mother of two children, and description of the docuseries states that Haddix once claimed that she loved Tonka more than her children.
NOTE: Video attached above is from FOX 2’s report on Haddix on Oct. 31, 2024.