Labrador Sworn In At State's Attorney's Office As Emotional Support Dog

A Labrador retriever was sworn in at Cook County State's Attorney's Office as the newest employee. The 2-year-old dog, named Hatty, will work 9-to-5 hours to provide emotional support to children and victims of sexual assault and violence.

Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx presided over the swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday at the George N. Leighton Criminal Courthouse in Little Village, Chicago. Hatty's primary handler and victim witness specialist Stephanie Coehlo held up the labrador's right paw over a law book during the ceremony.

Hatty will handle 150-200 cases annually, Cook County said.

Hatty is the first emotional-support dog at the state’s attorney’s office. She was trained partly by inmates through a dog training organization called Duo, based in St. Louis, Missouri. She spent 45 days training for her new job.

"Victims are the center of our work, and I know personally that retelling a painful story of abuse can cause trauma all over again," Foxx said, according to Fox News. "We’re excited to welcome Hatty to our team where she will provide comfort and peace to victims during one of the most difficult times in their lives."

"A trauma-informed and victim-centered model is one of the many ways our office works to better serve victims and witnesses," Fox wrote on Twitter.

The State's Attorney's Office also shared the news on Twitter. "The goal is to help sexual assault victims cope with the worst moments of their lives," the caption read.

In the same week, a U.S military dog Conan, a Belgian Malinois, was hailed as a hero for cornering ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi during a military raid in his Syrian hideout. The dog chased Baghdadi down to a dead-end tunnel before he set off his suicide vest, killing himself. Conan was injured in the raid but was making full recovery.