DA Conley Welcomes First Facility Dog Assigned to a New England Prosecutor’s Office
BOSTON, Sept. 18, 2014—Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley’s latest hire is only two years old and doesn’t talk much, but he’s bright-eyed, bushy-tailed, and already working like a dog.
Suffolk County District Attorney Dan Conley this week introduced Indy, the first facility dog to be assigned to a Massachusetts prosecutor’s office – or any government agency in New England. Indy specializes in comforting victims and witnesses during times of emotional turmoil – especially victims of child physical and sexual abuse as they meet with prosecutors and advocates.
His name is Indy, and he’s the first facility dog assigned to a Massachusetts prosecutor’s office – or any government agency in New England. The specially-trained golden retriever and yellow Labrador mix was provided to the Suffolk DA’s office last month at no cost by Canine Companions for Independence after an extensive application process and handler training regimen.
“Navigating the criminal justice system can be daunting even for someone who isn’t in crisis,” Conley said. “But for someone afraid and uncertain about describing a traumatic event before a room full of strangers, it can be overwhelming. That’s where Indy comes in. He’s specially trained to be a source of comfort to people, especially children, in emotional turmoil.”
Unlike service dogs who are trained to help a specific person, usually with a disability, Indy is a facility dog who offers comfort and stress relief to many people, often strangers.
Over the past few weeks, Conley said, Indy has sat in on a meeting with a family working through the serious, debilitating injury of a loved one in a car crash, made friends with a teenager who was sexual assaulted, and most recently sat in on a forensic interview with a very young victim of physical and sexual abuse by family members.
“In this latter case, Indy’s already proven his value,” Conley said. “In a previous forensic interview, the little boy was emotionally walled-off from the interviewer and we made very little progress. But last week, we introduced him to Indy. After getting to know one another for a little while, they went into the interview room and something remarkable happened – the boy opened up more than he ever had before. There was something about Indy’s gentle, loving nature that let the child speak.”
Suffolk County District Attorney Dan Conley went through an extensive application process to qualify as a host for Indy, a facility dog who provides comfort to victims and witnesses. Specially bred and trained to be calm and disciplined, Indy provides a gentle, loving presence that can make it easier to speak with police, prosecutors, and forensic interviewers.
Indy lives and commutes with his handler, Kara Hayes, who also serves as director of the DA’s Victim-Witness Assistance Program. He will be with the DA’s office for at least four years – “and hopefully much longer,” Conley said. Although his current assignment keeps him in the DA’s central offices downtown, prosecutors considering ways to bring Indy’s guileless charm to people across the county.
“He might be helpful with young victims at the Children’s Advocacy Center, or even in our courthouses,” Conley said. “You don’t have to be a kid to be nervous about testifying in the grand jury or at trial, and having a friend like Indy around to calm you down beforehand could be a great help to victims and witnesses alike. He may even have a part to play in our drug court, mental health court, and veterans’ court proceedings. There’s something about Indy’s friendly, trusting nature that breaks the ice and puts everybody at ease.”
To learn more about Canine Companions for Independence, visit www.cci.org.
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All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
