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TheAssociatedPress LOSANGELES Acitycoun- cilman wants to move an Asianelephantfromitslong- time home at the Los Ange- les Zoo to a sanctuary where it can roam more widely, but zoo officials say its habitat is state of the art. Councilman Paul Koretz said Tuesday he will intro- duce a plan for moving Billy the elephant at Wednesday's council meeting. Koretz and the group VoiceForTheAnimalsclaim Billy's habitat is constrained and that behavior by Billy in whichhesometimesbobshis head is a sign of trouble. Billy, born in 1985 and a resident of the zoo since 1989,ispartoftheElephants of Asia exhibit that includes two females, Tina and Jewel. Theyareseparatedfromhim by a fence. Advocates of moving Billy to an elephant sanctu- ary contend he cannot get enough exercise at the zoo for his physical and psycho- logical health. "I don't believe that the zoo can take the necessary care and give what the ele- phantsneed,"saidMelyaKa- plan, founder of the Voice For The Animals Founda- tion, told reporters. Zoo officials held their own news conference at the zoo to defend their care of Billy, who moved about in the background. "Billy is given free range," said Josh Sisk, curator of mammals. "(In) these areas he's given options each day. He has enrichment devices." The Elephants of Asia ex- hibit opened in 2010 and is the zoo's largest habitat, en- compassing 6.5 acres (2.63 hectares). Almost half of it is open space and includes bathing pools, a waterfall and var- ied topography. The habi- tat also includes a high-tech barn for care of all sizes of elephants. Zoo officials said the el- ephant's habitat exceeds state and federal standards, as well as those of the Asso- ciation of Zoos and Aquar- iums. Opponents contend that because Billy and the fe- males cannot use the en- tire area set aside for them because they are kept sepa- rated. Zoo Director John Lewis said the separation is nec- essary. CITY COUNCIL Battle over where to keep LA Zoo's Billy the elephant By Colleen Long and Jennifer Peltz The Associated Press NEW YORK Almost four decades after first-grader Etan Patz set out for school and ended up at the heart of one of America's most influ- ential missing-child cases, a former store clerk convicted of killing him was sen- tenced to at least 25 years in prison. In a few angry words, Etan's father condemned the convicted man. "Pedro Hernandez, after all these years, we finally know what dark secret you had locked in your heart," Stan Patz said. "I will never forgive you. The god you pray to will never forgive you. You are the monster in your nightmares." His wife, Julie Patz, wiped tears from her eyes as she witnessed the cul- mination of a long quest to hold someone accountable for their son's disappear- ance. The case affected po- lice practices, parenting and the nation's conscious- ness of missing children. Hernandez, 56, didn't look at the Patzes, speak or react as he got the max- imum allowable sentence: 25 years to life in prison, meaning he won't be eligi- ble for parole until he has served the quarter-century. The lead defense lawyer, Harvey Fishbein, told the court Hernandez wanted to express deep sympathy to the Patzes but also to say "he's an innocent man and he had nothing to do with the disappearance of Etan Patz." Hernandez was a teen- ager working at a conve- nience shop in Etan's Man- hattan neighborhood when the boy vanished in 1979, on the first day he was allowed to walk alone to his school bus stop. Hernandez, who's from Maple Shade, New Jersey, confessed to choking Etan. But his lawyers have said he's mentally ill and his confession was false, and they are vowing to appeal his conviction. In a sign of the case's impact on the law en- forcement officials and everyday peo- ple enmeshed in it, the courtroom audience Tues- day included Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr., police officers who worked on the case and a half-dozen ex-jurors. Etan was among the first missing children pictured on milk cartons. His case contributed to an era of fear among American families, making anxious parents more protective of kids who many once allowed to roam and play unsupervised in their neighborhoods. "Through this painful and utterly horrific real- life story, we came to re- alize how easily our chil- dren could disappear," said Vance, a Democrat who made a 2009 campaign promise to revisit the case if elected. The Patzes' advocacy helped to establish a na- tional missing-children ho- tline and to make it easier for law enforcement agen- cies to share information about such cases. The May 25 anniversary of Etan's disappearance became Na- tional Missing Children's Day. Still, Stan Patz said, they had doubted they would ever find out what hap- pened to their child because there were "so many false leads, so many blind alleys. So many years went by." "Now," he said after the sentencing, "I know what the face of evil looks like." CRIME Man gets 25 years in 1979 case of missing boy Etan Patz RICHARDVOGEL—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS Billy, a male Asian elephant, roams in his habitat at the Elephants of Asia exhibit at the Los Angeles Zoo. Hernandez IWantToBeRecycled.org Thurs, April 20 RedBluff-TehamaCounty CHAMBER OF COMMERCE &CATTLEMEN'SASSOC. ROUND-UP MIXER Big Cowboy fun, Music & More! 5:30pm @ Reynolds Ranch & Farm Supply 501 Madison St. Mustbe21oroldertoattend! 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