NATION IN BRIEF : LOUISIANA : 3 Monkeys Used in Experiments Killed

Three crippled monkeys, the subject of court fights by animal rights activists for nine years, were put to death while under anesthesia in Covington, La., after final experiments involving sensory perception, officials said. The three monkeys were among seven remaining animals seized from a Silver Spring, Md., laboratory in 1981 over charges of mistreatment. They had been part of a study of stroke and spinal-cord injury rehabilitation financed by the National Institutes of Health. The monkeys had been kept at a Tulane University laboratory since their seizure by the government. A federal appeals court cleared the way for the final experiments.