Was Killing of Cincinnati Gorilla Justified?

Claim: The Cincinnati Zoo is defending its decision to kill a gorilla after it grabbed a child that fell into its exhibit while others are questioning whether the zoo made the right choice.

In a statement, the zoo said the 4-year-old child climbed through a public barrier at Gorilla World and fell into the exhibit's moat.

At a press conference on Monday, zoo officials offered a more thorough explanation of how the child climbed through the public barrier and fell into the exhibit.

Evidence: We are very glad that the little boy is okay," Thane Maynard, director of the Cincinnati Zoo told reporters at a press conference. "That is one happy thing in a sad and dangerous situation."He said the zoo did not take the shooting of 17-year-old silverback gorilla Harambe lightly. However, Maynard said that those questioning whether the child's life was in danger didn't understand the risk the gorilla posed.

Explanation: We are closely reviewing the facts of the case. Updates will be provided.3:45 PM - 31 May 2016 126126 Re-tweets 105105 likes The United States Department of Agriculture does not have an investigation open at this time, Tanya Espinosa, public affairs specialist, told Patch via email. However, the agency will be looking into this incident to determine whether there were any Animal Welfare Act noncompliances that contributed.