LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A Las Vegas non-profit business said they are trying to unleash certified therapy dogs on local courtrooms to assist victims on the witness stand.
The effort is in conjunction with a free program involving UNLV law students intended to help children understand the legal process before testifying.
Brevyn, 9, and Brielle Moffet, 5, participated in Kid’s Court School at UNLV. Professors say the training can change a child’s life, helping children fight anxiety while on the witness stand.
“It’s often the most important piece of a case – if not the only evidence that we have,” said Rebecca Nathanson, the professor who created the program. “We have to rely on kids’ voices.”
According to a study cited by Nathanson, children on the stand can have heart rates as high as 240 beats per minute. The Moffet kids’ mother, Brittnie Watkins, also an attorney, said that the stress adults feel about appearing in court is amplified in young ones.
“You can imagine how that fear or stress is multiplied as a child,” Watkins said.
The effort, led by the Las Vegas-based organization Courtroom Critters, began with one dog and has now grown to 40 furry friends. Stephani Loffredo, a retired UNLV police officer, said it’s all meant to make a difference for victims.
“I’ll have victims of very traumatic crime, and they look at the dog, and they touch them, and they smile,” Loffredo said. “In police work, [victims and witnesses] don’t really have the help that they should have.”
She said the animals appear to calm the children down.
“I think it’s the cuteness of the animals,” Loffredo said.
Nathanson said the programs can’t change the past but are instead meant to give children a voice,
“I can change a child’s life by impacting them and giving them the tools necessary to enable them to have a voice in court,” Nathanson said.
To date, 40 states have enacted statutes to allow certified therapy dogs in court. Nevada has yet to do so. Loffredo says she hopes the state’s next legislative session will lead to change. More information on Courtroom Critters and Kid’s Court School is available on each program’s website.