By OLIVIA BERGMEIER
Salina Post
The courthouse is often daunting; large, stiff rooms with equally rigid chairs lead to a harrowing experience for anyone who enters.
But once Crenshaw, the professional service dog, enters the 28th Judicial District Community Corrections' drug court each Monday, director Michelle Callam said it almost always breaks the tension.
Starting at his new position as Salina's 28th Judicial District's service dog, Crenshaw helps court-goers and other clients find comfort in and around the judicial system.
This summer, shortly after Crenshaw arrived at the 28th Judicial District, he visited Ottawa County Courthouse to meet its staff, where they almost immediately found an opportunity for his assistance.
In a small witness room that day, an 11-year-old girl prepared to give her statement to the courtroom as a survivor of a violent crime.
Crenshaw is trained to sense shifts in mood, and after witnessing the young girl's fear, he stayed with her from the witness room and sat with her as she gave her statement to the judge.
"We deal with people who are on probation for high-level felonies, and a lot of people that are our clients have been through a lot of trauma in their life," Callam said. "When we are meeting with a client, and they're upset about something, an officer will call and ask for Crenshaw to come into the room — it just takes it from a heightened situation and de-escalates it pretty quickly."
Since Crenshaw arrived at the district, Callam said more clients report for their scheduled court dates and probation visits, and the district has experienced an overall improved mood in and around the court system.
Pre-trial service staff member and Crenshaw's handler Andrew Pellant said he not only helps clients but often helps the staff of the 28th Judicial District.
"Especially working at an office that we work at, whether you're a client or a staff member, it's always nice to have someone like Crenshaw," Pellant said. "Within days, I saw the immediate response was positive — demeanors and attitudes of staff members and the clients."
Pellant said before Crenshaw arrived, the district had some probation clients who had trouble appearing for scheduled visits, but now those clients come in looking for Crenshaw.
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About a year ago, Callam said after some staff returned from a court training event, they told her of a drug court service dog in Pennsylvania. This idea acted as the catalyst for the 28th Judicial District.
Late last year, the district applied for a service dog from CARES Inc., a service dog training facility based in Concordia, KS. Crenshaw arrived at the district in June, just over a year old.
On Monday afternoons, Crenshaw visits drug court to help clients through the stress of appearing, and the rest of the week, Crenshaw moves about the district assisting various cases.
Once done with his day at work, Pellant takes him home, and as soon as the service dog vest hits the floor, Crenshaw knows it's time to relax.
"When you take that vest off, he's a different dog. It's like, 'I'm not working anymore,'" Pellant said. "He has several toys that he loves, and we alternate playing fetch with him. He has a sloth that he likes, an alligator and a pig. So he loves the play — he has a rope. He loves to chase his balls that we have and throw them down, and then really, other than that, he likes to nap a lot of the time."