The district attorney for Craig, Mayes and Rogers counties introduced the newest members of his victim support staff.
Maggie and Jerzy are trained therapeutic dogs. DA Matt Ballard said they’re doing a great job, especially when they work with children who are victims of crime.
"It relaxes them. It grounds them. It gives them something that they can focus on that's good and takes away some of the stress," Ballard said. "And when you take away the stress, what we've found is that you do get better testimony. You get kids that are a little less apprehensive."
The dogs and their handlers are volunteers from the William W. Barnes Children’s Advocacy Center and Court Appointed Special Advocates.
"They're specially trained. They have to go through a program — the dogs and the handlers — so, no, it's just not any dog pulled off the street or any person with a dog," said Holly Webb with CAC. "They have to go through training."
Maggie is a 3-year-old Labrador, and Jerzy is an Aussiedoodle, a mix between an Australian shepherd and a standard poodle.
Kelli Chronister is Maggie’s owner. She said the Lab’s duck-hunting career was cut short when she tore her ACL as a pup.
"She's so good and loves kids, I thought, 'You know, she needs a job,'" Chronister said. "So, decided that we would try this route with her, and she's done great."