A Witness’ Best Friend in Court (WNYC)
WNYC, March 22, 2017
A Witness’ Best Friend in Court
“Former Seattle prosecutor Ellen O’Neill Stephens came up with the idea of using dogs in court more than a decade ago, after seeing children who said they were victimized by sexual abuse freeze up in court. She now runs the Courthouse Dogs Foundation. ‘When you have a calm dog like this, Molly, snuggled up to you while you’re waiting for your hearing or sleeping at your feet while you’re in the witness box — although that’s a scary situation — you feel calm,’ she explained. ‘And when you feel calm, you’re better able to tell the judge or the jury what happened to you.’ Stephens’ work was also inspired by seeing the special link between her 35-year-old son, who has cerebral palsy, and his assistance dog. She spoke to about 25 people at the New York City Bar Association recently about her foundation.”
