New dog trained to help child victims through stress of court testimony

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A London non-profit agency that offers support services for child victims going through the court system has welcomed a new four-legged member to their team.

While the London Family Court Clinic’s staff roster consists of psychotherapists and advocates, their newest addition spent the first two years of its life training to become a service dog: Virgil, a black-lab cross, joins the roster of canines that offer comfort and support to young witnesses testifying in court, many of whom are sexual-abuse survivors.

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“It is an exceptionally important part of our program,” the clinic’s executive director, Tuhin Jajal said, noting it’s not a “cure” for the trauma kids go through testifying.

Under the Youth Justice Act, a child testifying in court is entitled to various supports, including a service animal.

Virgil is trained to sit quietly with the child, and support the youngster by leaning into them or putting its head on their lap. It also can sense if a child is experiencing negative emotions, and knows when to give them space, Jajal said.

The process to access the free service is simple, Jajal said, but the non-profit went almost a year without being able to offer it since the last facility dog retired in June 2023 due to illness.

Virgil lives with Ellissa Riel, a psychotherapist with the clinic and its primary handler. Riel says Virgil is a “really good fit for court” because of a calm demeanour and ability to stay in one place for a long period of time with limited bathroom breaks.

The facility dog program is part of the organization’s wider role supporting child and youth victims through the justice system. Last year, the agency launched Beacon House Child and Youth Advocacy Centre alongside the London police and the Children’s Aid Society. It aims to minimize the toll on young victims who are “repeatedly telling their stories” to health care and mental health care professionals, along with police and child protection services, by bringing everything under one roof, Jajal said.

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Since opening in February 2023, Jajal says almost 200 kids have come through Beacon House, with the majority of cases involving sexual abuse, he said.

Karen Bellehumeur was a Crown prosecutor in London for 32 years and says she prosecuted many cases of sexual violence involving child victims. She now provides legal advice to victims, and attributes the low report rate of sexual abuse – estimated at five per cent – to the challenges faced by victims in the criminal justice system.

“It is really a re-traumatizing experience to go through the criminal justice system,” said Bellehumeur, noting the process can sometimes take years. “Testifying, for complainants, is probably the hardest thing they’ve ever done”

Tactics used by defense lawyers, which often serve to challenge a complainant’s credibility, also can be harmful to young witnesses, Bellehumeur said.

Anything that can calm a child’s nerves, such as the presence of a dog, can help the witness think clearly and give better testimony, she said. “It’s just a really innovative way to deal with people who have been traumatized and try to mitigate the trauma of testifying.”

Some victims have said they couldn’t have gone through the court process with the help of a support dog, Riel said.

The London Family Court Clinic’s facility dog program is funded by community donations and support from local service groups such as Kiwanis. It doesn’t get any government funding.

For more information about the clinic or Beacon house or to make a donation, click here or here.

nbrennan@postmedia.com

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