Hailed as a first in Minnesota, trained dog joins teenage sex assault victim on witness stand

Hailed as a first in a Minnesota courtroom, a trained dog joined a crime victim on the witness stand for five hours to help the teenager overcome her anxiety to give testimony that proved crucial in sending her rapist to prison.

Nova, a golden retriever trained as a facility dog, accompanied the 15-year-old girl as she testified in a Stearns County district courtroom that Jairo Missael Fernandez Sorto sexually assaulted her over what prosecutors contended was a lengthy period of time.

The case against the 39-year-old St. Cloud man culminated Thursday when he was sentenced to a 30-year term that will keep him in prison for nearly two-thirds of that time.

Prosecutors said that as a result of Nova's maiden assignment, Minnesota has joined 15 other states offering this aspect of victim support.

Without Nova at her feet for her testimony with only a break for lunch, the victim "would not have had the emotional stamina to focus on the questions as thoughtfully and as clearly as she was able to," said Assistant County Attorney Jamie Reinschmidt, who prosecuted Fernandez Sorto. "Nova just gave her a calming effect, which obviously was the desired effect."

Reinschmidt said that if Nova hadn't been allowed to be with the victim and give her the strength to take the witness stand, "we would have had to dismiss the case."

Nova was trained by Helping Paws in Hopkins for 2 ½ years before her placement in October 2019 with handler Keli Trautman, a paralegal and victim witness coordinator with the county attorney's office.

Nova and Trautman have assisted many victims and witnesses during meetings with prosecutors in preparation for trial and have been present outside courtrooms with victims before and following their testimony.

Nova's next opportunity to help a witness get through testifying comes Monday, when a 37-year-old man goes on trial before the same judge on charges he sexually assaulted a girl who is now 11.

Before Judge Laura Moehrle ruled that Nova could be with the girl during her testimony in Fernandez Sorto's trial, the defense argued that the dog's presence with the victim on the stand would elicit undue sympathy among jurors.

However, Moehrle's order in favor of Nova's role noted that the defense offered no evidence that the dog would harm Fernandez Sorto's right to a fair trial.

"The court finds that Nova's presence would assist [the girl] in reducing her anxiety and increase her sense of calm, and thus increase her ability to testify completely and accurately," the judge wrote. "The helpfulness of Nova's presence to [the girl] outweighs any potential risk of prejudice to the defendant."

Moehrle required that the girl and Nova be on the witness stand before the jury came into the courtroom and to remain there whenever the jury left.

Reinschmidt said Nova also was under the judge's order to be at the girl's feet and kept out of the jury's view. Trautman, as Nova's handler, also was seated on the floor next to the girl the entire time.

At one point, the prosecutor recalled, "Nova nudged [the girl's] hand with her nose, and Keli thought [the jurors] may have seen that." Otherwise, Reinschmidt said, "you wouldn't have even known she was there."

Nova saw the case through to its conclusion and was with the girl during Thursday's sentencing — and afterward.

"The victim broke down during sentencing," Reinschmidt said, Moments later, "in a separate room, Nova comforted her after the hearing."