Testifying in Sex-Crime Case, Witness, 15, Has Canine at Hand for Comfort
As a 15-year-old girl testified yesterday in a sexual assault trial in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., she had a calming influence right at her feet.
Largely invisible to the jury, an 11-year-old golden retriever named Rose who has been trained as a therapy dog was available for a comforting pat, reports the Arizona Daily Star.
Although the defense objected that the dog might prejudice the jury against the defendant, Dutchess County Judge Stephen Greller allowed Rose to be present to help a child witness who experts had said would otherwise be unable to testify. In overruling the objection, he relied in part on a 1990s sex-crime trial in which another child witness had been allowed to hold a teddy bear as a “comfort item.”
The jury in the Poughkeepsie case was told yesterday that a companion animal was with the witness and urged not to draw any conclusion from that fact or allow any sympathy for the dog to affect their decision-making.
Related coverage:
ABA Journal: “At this Prosecutor’s Office, a Furry Soft Spot for Kids”
ABA Journal: “Courthouse dogs ease witnesses’ trauma”
