ST. CLOUD The Stearns County Attorney s Office has a furry new staff member to help them when interviewing victims and witnesses of traumatic events like murder and child abuse.
Nova is a 4-year-old Golden Retriever whose job is to help people relax when talking about those traumatic events.
Nova s handler,
Keli Trautman is a Paralegal and Victim Witness Coordinator for Stearns County. She says Nova is intuitive and is a calming presence for victims.
Stearns County Attorney
Janelle Kendall says while these Facility Dogs are popular around the country, Nova is only the 2nd dog in Minnesota along with her sister in Ramsey County who has been placed.
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ST. CLOUD A 45-pound golden retriever with a love for snuggles, belly rubs and pancakes is one of the latest additions at the Stearns County Attorney s Office.
Nova, a 4-year-old trained facility dog, provides comfort to people during stressful criminal justice-related interactions.
During the day, Nova comes to work with her handler Keli Trautman, a paralegal and victim witness coordinator. Nova and Trautman meet with victims and witnesses of domestic violence, sexual abuse, trafficking and homicide cases. She is crazy-awesome at her job, Trautman said. Trautman and Nova have worked together for more than a year preparing to become certified for public interactions. Trautman said Nova passed her public access trial last month.
Charges Dropped Against Man Accused in Robbery Of A Woman
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According to court documents, the Stearns County Attorney s Office dismissed the charges against 22-year-old Vincent Tran.
The woman said she recognized Tran from high school. Court records show Tran called the woman by her sister s name and began asking her questions.
As she continued to walk past the group, one of the men grabbed her. She told police one of the men, a black man she did not know pointed a handgun at her while one of the other two men began rummaging through her purse.