In July of 2008, Springfield, Missouri resident Debby Rose filed a lawsuit against the Springfield-Greene County Health Department, a local Wal-Mart and Cox Health Systems for discriminating against her and her monkey, Richard.KSPR.com: Woman Files Lawsuit over Service Monkey Discrimination (July 14, 2008)
Helper Monkey
Rose suffers from agoraphobiaKSPR News: Woman in middle of monkey lawsuit speaks out (July 16, 2008) and a potentially debilitating anxiety disorder. She maintains that Richard's presence helps calm her anxiety and prevent her from having panic attacks.ABC News: Monkey Helps Calm Woman's Fears (January 11, 2007) In 2006, the Springfield-Greene County Health Department sent letters to local establishments instructing them not to allow Rose and Richard access to businesses at which food was served or sold. Department representatives claimed that Richard did not qualify as a service animal, but Rose maintains that his function is no different than that of a guide dog.News-Leader.com: Suit alleges monkey discrimination (July 17, 2008)
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Rose and Richard were denied access to several public establishments
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