Mega, 2-Year-Old Labrador Retriever, Joins Nassau County District Attorney's Office
MINEOLA, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A new and special staffer has joined the Nassau County district attorney's office.
Nassau County prosecutor Amanda Burke has the difficult job of investigating child sex abuse cases, but a new member of the staff has made it easier for children to open up.
Mega, 2-Year-Old Labrador Retriever, Joins Nassau County District Attorney's Office
The new hire is a 2-year-old Labrador retriever named Mega.
Nassau County district attorney Kathleen Rice said animals help victims cope during an investigation.
"Animals can bring comfort to these victims and witnesses, help them relax and open up so that they can help law enforcement not only get the bad guys, but help us prosecute them," Rice said.
"When we meet with children or victims for the first time, they've never spoken to us before; and now they have speak to us about the worst thing that's ever happened to them," Burke said. "One of the great things about Mega is that she has helped us to build rapport with those victims."
Rice said animals offer a level of comfort that humans can't.
"Everyone who is a pet owner -- dog or otherwise -- knows the comfort that pets offer, they offer unconditional love and they give you a sense of security that quite honestly I don't think any human being can give you," Rice said.
The nonprofit Canine Companions for Independence provided Mega free of charge to Rice's office. The group trains dogs and their handlers in "assisting in stressful scenarios for victims and witnesses – especially children – such as those frequently faced in a prosecutor's office," according a press release from the district attorney's office.
Forfeiture money is being used to pay for Mega's vet bills and food costs.
Mega has already assisted two victims of sex crimes since she started working on Nov. 10, Rice's office said.
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