‘It brings some warmth’: Every dog graduates in rare Las Vegas court certification event

Every dog has its day, but not necessarily its day in court.

That wasn’t the case Friday for about a dozen dogs taking part in a courtroom certification event Friday at UNLV. All the dogs passed judgment.

“That is very uncommon,” said Ryan Millbern, president of the International Casino and Resort Working Dog Association. “Every dog passing, that is generally not the norm by any means. So today, it’s apparent these dogs have had some training before.”

These dogs accompany victims, often children, as they testify in court.

The training and certification event was held in a simulation court at UNLV’s Boyd Law School. Courtroom Critters, a nonprofit specializing in therapy dog services, ran the event.

Upon getting certified, dogs dressed up in a graduation cap and sash, while Hufflepuff, a half-French, half-English bulldog wearing a white wig presided as a symbolic judge.

“We’ve got over 3,000 kids in our foster system right now,” said Gregory Gordon, an actual judge. “Again, most of those kids are victims of some kind of abuse.”

For much of the event, Gordon sat at the back of the simulated courtroom, while various speakers talked about the impact of therapy dogs and provided information their handlers would need to know. Volunteers sat to Gordon’s right, filling in for witnesses the dogs would have to accompany in actual court.

Serenity Snare served as the first “victim,” accompanied by a 4-year-old Belgian tervuren named “Mahlu.”

“I wasn’t having a great day today, and everything is so much better,” Snare said. “He’s such a sweet and well-behaved dog.”

Mahlu’s trainer, 72-year-old Daniele Ledoux-Starzyk, speaks to the dog in French. She said Mahlu is an accomplished showdog, having won competitions in the France, Switzerland and the U.S. Now, he’s trying out therapy.

“I was asked by someone, and can’t remember who, and (they) said, ‘Would you like to do therapy with him?’ Because he’s so different than most Belgians,” Ledoux-Starzyk said.

Mahlu and the other dogs sat in the certification room for several hours. Each had to take a turn with a witness on their own while speakers talked. Staff at the Clark County district attorney’s office also gave a presentation on severe abuse cases they had dealt with.

Millbern said the idea was that as different speakers talked about emotionally intense topics, handlers and their dogs would have to maintain composure among rising tensions.

“Even when you’re doing your best to hide those emotions, the dogs can smell that their handler is upset,” Millbern explained. “So, it’s important for these dogs to be around that and to train with that and to make sure that the dogs maintain their calmness, even being surrounded by people that are upset.”

Every dog, including Mahlu, remained calm during these speeches and presentations, even during retellings of real cases involving child abuse.

“I’ve had to learn to be kind of careful, especially with (Mahlu), because he is so attuned to me and attended to people’s feelings,” Ledoux-Starzyk said.

The dogs took turns wearing a cap and purple sash as trainers captured photos of them on the courtroom bench and floor as “Pomp and Circumstance” played. They can now help victims testify at court with certifications from Courtroom Critters.

“Having dogs in a courtroom setting is absolutely vital,” Millbern said. “It brings an immense amount of confidence for many victims. It brings some warmth, some comfort in a time that is probably, other than the actual victimization, this is the next most stressful moment of their life.”

Contact Finnegan Belleau at fbelleau@reviewjournal.com.