A June 20, 2015 photo provided by the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden shows Harambe, a western lowland gorilla, who was fatally shot Saturday, May 28, 2016, to protect a 4-year-old boy who had entered its exhibit. (Jeff McCurry/Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden via The Cincinatti Enquirer via AP)
The Associated Press
CINCINNATI (AP) - The Latest on the killing of a gorilla after a child fell into its enclosure at the Cincinnati Zoo (all times local):
11:35 a.m.
A prosecutor's office says police are investigating the circumstances surrounding a 4-year-old boy entering a gorilla's exhibit at the Cincinnati Zoo and the animal being shot to death to protect the child.
The Hamilton County prosecutor's office said Tuesday that police will confer with prosecutors after their investigation is complete. The endangered gorilla was killed Saturday after the boy got into its enclosure. The boy's family has said he is doing fine at home.
Cincinnati police said over the weekend that no charges were planned. However, spokeswoman Tiffaney Hardey says police are reviewing the matter and continuing to gather information.
Some people have contended there should be child endangering charges against the parents while others want the zoo held responsible.
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10:40 a.m.
A federal inspector warned the Cincinnati Zoo that the public could have been "at great risk" if two polar bears that escaped a behind-the-scenes holding area in March had gained outside access.
Federal reports viewed by The Associated Press also show the zoo's Gorilla World exhibit was inspected in April, and no violations were found.
On Saturday, the zoo fatally shot an endangered western lowland gorilla to protect a 4-year-old boy who entered its exhibit. An animal protection watchdog group is calling for fines against the zoo.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service says it will "be looking into this incident."
On March 16, some zoo visitors were moved for safety after two polar bears wandered through an open den door into a service hallway.
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9 a.m.
An animal protection watchdog group wants the federal government to hold the Cincinnati Zoo responsible for the death of an endangered western lowland gorilla.
The Cincinnati-based Stop Animal Exploitation NOW says the U.S. Department of Agriculture that inspects zoo facilities should fine the zoo for having an exhibit in which people can gain access to animals. The USDA and Cincinnati Zoo didn't immediately respond Tuesday morning to requests for comment.
Zoo director Thane Maynard has repeatedly defended the shooting Saturday of the 17-year-old gorilla as necessary to save the 4-year-old who fell into the enclosure. He says the zoo is safe.
The watchdog group's executive director, Michael Budkie, says the zoo has had past problems. In March, two polar bears wandered through an open den door into a service hallway.
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6 a.m.
The director of the Cincinnati Zoo says it remains safe for its 1.6 million annual visitors despite a weekend tragedy in which a gorilla was fatally shot to protect a 4-year-old boy who had entered its exhibit.
Thane Maynard, however, said a review is underway to determine any improvements that can make the zoo safer.
The male western lowland gorilla named Harambe was killed Saturday by a special zoo response team that feared for the boy's safety. Video taken by zoo visitors showed the gorilla at times appeared protective of the boy but also violently dragged him through the shallow moat.
Maynard said the decision to kill the gorilla was the right one. He said the gorilla was agitated and disoriented by the commotion after the boy fell.
A boy brings flowers to put beside a statue of a gorilla outside the shuttered Gorilla World exhibit at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati. A gorilla named Harambe was killed by a special zoo response team on Saturday after a 4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and it was concluded his life was in danger. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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Zoo visitors look at protestors and mourners from a walk bridge during a vigil for the gorilla Harambe outside the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati. Harambe was killed Saturday at the Cincinnati Zoo after a 4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and a special zoo response team concluded his life was in danger. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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Animal rights activists and mourners gather for a Memorial Day vigil outside the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Monday, May 30, 2016 in Cincinnati for Harambe, the gorilla killed Saturday at the Cincinnati Zoo after a 4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and a special zoo response team concluded his life was in danger. There has been an outpouring on social media of people upset about the killing of the member of an endangered species. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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A sign is held outside the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden during a demonstration as a zoo visitor enters the grounds via a foot bridge, Monday May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati. Animal rights activists and mourners gathered Monday for a Memorial Day vigil for the Harambe, a gorilla killed at the Cincinnati Zoo Saturday after a 4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and a special zoo response team concluded his life was in danger. There has been an outpouring on social media of people upset about the killing of the member of an endangered species. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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Thane Maynard, director of the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, speaks during a news conference, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati. A gorilla named Harambe was killed by a special zoo response team on Saturday after a4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and it was concluded his life was in danger. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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Alesia Buttrey, of Cincinnati, holds a sign with a picture of the gorilla Harambe during a vigil in his honor outside the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati. Harambe was killed Saturday at the Cincinnati Zoo after a 4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and a special zoo response team concluded his life was in danger. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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Kate Villanueva of Erlanger, Kentucky, center right, holds a sign depicting the gorilla Harambe during a vigil outside the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati.Harambe was killed Saturday at the Cincinnati Zoo after a 4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and a special zoo response team concluded his life was in danger. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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Bettina Ernsg, of Cincinnati, holds a candle alongside her father John, right, during a vigil outside the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati. Animal rights activists gathered Monday for a Memorial Day vigil for Harambe, the gorilla killed at the Cincinnati Zoo on Saturday after a 4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and a special zoo response team concluded his life was in danger. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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Cheryl Flaherty, of Cincinnati, left, comforts a fellow mourner who refused to be identified during a vigil outside the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati for Harambe, the gorilla killed Saturday at the Cincinnati Zoo after a 4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and a special zoo response team concluded his life was in danger. There has been an outpouring on social media of people upset about the killing of the member of an endangered species. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
The Associated Press
A boy brings flowers to put beside a statue of a gorilla outside the shuttered Gorilla World exhibit at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati. A gorilla named Harambe was killed by a special zoo response team on Saturday after a 4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and it was concluded his life was in danger. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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A boy is led away after putting flowers beside a statue of a gorilla outside the shuttered Gorilla World exhibit at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati. A gorilla named Harambe was killed by a special zoo response team on Saturday after a 4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and it was concluded his life was in danger. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
The Associated Press
Thane Maynard, director of the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, speaks during a news conference, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati. A gorilla named Harambe was killed by a special zoo response team on Saturday after a4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and it was concluded his life was in danger. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
The Associated Press
Thane Maynard, director of the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, speaks during a news conference, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati. A gorilla named Harambe was killed by a special zoo response team on Saturday after a4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and it was concluded his life was in danger. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
The Associated Press
Thane Maynard, director of the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, speaks during a news conference, Monday, May 30, 2016, in Cincinnati. A gorilla named Harambe was killed by a special zoo response team on Saturday after a4-year-old boy slipped into an exhibit and it was concluded his life was in danger. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
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