In the midst of this Pandemic … beautiful things are still happening
Our friends from Crisis Response Ministry called Sheryll Barker asking for a therapy dog for a young sexual assault victim. A teenage victim had requested to have a therapy dog present as she sat in court with her attacker, who was convicted of continuous sex assault of a minor. The victim was to give her deposition at this hearing where her attacker would receive his sentence. Sheryll put the Victims' Services Advocate in touch with Kristi Rooks. The rest of this story is from Kristi.
When we arrived, we went into a very empty courthouse. This case was the only thing on the docket and no other judges were holding court this day. All activity had been halted due to the virus, except for this case. They were trying to keep in line with the low number gathering rule.
We went to the courtroom and met the victim's grandmother and aunt. The aunt got a text that victim had arrived with their mother so she went to meet them at the front door. It took them a while so I took John on a walk in the hall in front of the court room. As we approached the main hall, I saw a gaggle of teens walking toward us. My dog crossed me, which was shocking because he never breaks his perfect heel. He bee-lined for a young person in the middle of the group. Sure enough, this was the victim. She got down on the floor and said, "My dog is here!!!!" The victim petted and petted until they were called to come down to the court room. She said to me, "Don't leave my side. I want the dog next to me the whole time." Due to germ protocol we had to sit two chairs from each other but I just put John between us. He laid at the victim's feet. When her attacker was being questioned, she became upset. John sat up and got her attention..Victim petted and petted, which broke her visible sadness. John never left her side. It was such an honor to get to be there, supporting the victim and her family.
When we walked out of court room, the family and friends all came to see John. One said, "After that we all need some therapy dog time." Before we left, the victim had a moment with John telling him how he helped get her through the morning. Someone called her over during her time with John, she replied: "Wait a minute I'm talking to MY Dog.... telling him bye."
I'm so thankful and honored to get to be a part of this victim's journey to healing.
All this being said...John was amazing. But, the real hero of the day was the victim. That day had to have been a very hard day for them.
The family took lots of pictures with John. I will attach ones that do not show the faces of those involved.
Thank you, ATD, for allowing us to stay within germ protocols and still make visits.
Peace and Health be with you all,
Kristi Rooks