The twin brother of the victim of a vicious chimpanzee attack in Stamford last week is seeking guardianship of Charla Nash, 55, and her 17-year-old daughter.
Charla Nash's twin, Michael, needs the legal designation to make decisions on behalf of Charla and her 17-year-old daughter, Briana, who is staying with family friends in Connecticut, Steve Nash said Sunday.
Steve Nash, Charla Nash's older brother, spoke with the press.
"That's the way my sister would want it," he said about his sister's care.
Nash was mauled last Monday by a 200-pound, 14-year-old chimpanzee named Travis owned by her friend, 70-year-old Sandra Herold of Stamford. Nash suffered devastating injuries.
"She's stabilized and the evaluation process is going to take a long time. It's a slow process," said Steve Nash, who is with his sister in Ohio.
Charla Nash was treated at Stamford Hospital and went through more than seven hours of surgery before being moved to the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio Thursday. She remains under sedation. Doctors haven't decided if she will be a candidate for a face transplant at the clinic.
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The clinic is known for performing the nation’s first face transplant.
Herold, who owned the chimp for nearly all his life, has said she fed Travis the finest foods, including steak, lobster, cheesecake and wine.
Herold asked Charla Nash to come to her home the day of the attack to help lure Travis back into her house. Herold has speculated that the chimp was trying to protect her and attacked Nash because she had changed her hairstyle, was driving a different car and was holding a stuffed toy in front of her face to get Travis' attention.
When Travis attacked, Herold stabbed him with a butcher knife and struck him with a shovel in unsuccessful attempts to move him away. Police, who shot and killed the chimp, said it appeared Nash's face was ripped away in the 12-minute attack.
