Canine comfort could soon be on the way for child abuse victims at the Lake County Children’s Advocacy Center, and the dogs may also join them in courtrooms.
A state bill is moving forward that would allow a facility dog — expected to be obtained by the Gurnee-based Children’s Advocacy Center — to accompany children to legal proceedings in the Lake County Courthouse.
State’s Attorney Michael Nerheim said facility dogs, usually Labradors or golden retrievers that receive two years of intensive training, can be obtained for free through charitable organizations.
The advocacy center, operated by the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office, helps handle cases involving physical or sexual abuse against children. Last year the center dealt with 681 new local cases.
“When these children come in to be interviewed, it can be incredibly stressful. A lot of thought and care goes into making that process as comfortable as possible for our victims. The presence of a highly-trained dog is one tool that will undoubtedly help some children through this process,” Nerheim said.
The dogs are specially trained to sit in a courtroom and in interview settings. The advocacy center plans to use a facility dog to accompany child victims when they are being interviewed by police.
Noting that the training for facility dogs is different from that for therapy dogs, Nerheim said facility dogs will respond to commands from people other than their trainers. He said the dogs will serve as comforting companions to child victims and respond to their commands.
“It can help give the kids a sense of control, sometimes for the first time in their life,” Nerheim said.
The proposed legislation, Senate Bill 1389, focuses on court-appropriate circumstances. Nerheim said the bill already passed unanimously in a Senate committee and he is optimistic it will become law.
“We don’t anticipate much push back on something like this,” he said. “Having a facility dog available for the comfort of these victims will assist the State’s Attorney’s Office in seeking justice for the children of Lake County.”
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Nerheim said that if the legislation is approved, measures would be taken to ensure the dogs, while providing comfort to victims, do not interfere with the rights of defendants in court.
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