Dog Called as Witness in French Courtroom
- 10 years ago
At a recent preliminary hearing in the city of Tours, a presiding judge called a Labrador named ‘Tango’ to the stand.
Most people will agree dogs are awesome. Court authorities in France seem to concur with that statement.
A canine recently served as a witness in a murder case. At a recent preliminary hearing in the city of Tours, the presiding judge called a Labrador named ‘Tango’ to the stand.
The goal was for the nine-year-old pooch to confirm or deny the murder allegations against his master’s alleged killer. As part of the hearing, the judge ordered the accused to hold a baseball bat and threaten the Lab with it.
In court officials' minds, the dog’s subsequent reaction to the bat threat could possibly implicate or rule out the accused as the assailant. Another dog named Norman was brought in to serve as the so-called ‘control group’ so the ruling wouldn’t be biased.
No decision ended up being made on the dog’s reaction, as the court experiment didn’t turn out too well. Both pooches were sent home.
Said the suspect’s lawyer Gregoire Lafarge ‘So if Tango lifted his right paw, moved his mouth or his tail, is he recognizing my client or not?’ I find it very troubling for the French legal system. If a judge ignores the demands of reason and surrounds himself with experts who are unreasonable, well the system becomes very dangerous.’
Most people will agree dogs are awesome. Court authorities in France seem to concur with that statement.
A canine recently served as a witness in a murder case. At a recent preliminary hearing in the city of Tours, the presiding judge called a Labrador named ‘Tango’ to the stand.
The goal was for the nine-year-old pooch to confirm or deny the murder allegations against his master’s alleged killer. As part of the hearing, the judge ordered the accused to hold a baseball bat and threaten the Lab with it.
In court officials' minds, the dog’s subsequent reaction to the bat threat could possibly implicate or rule out the accused as the assailant. Another dog named Norman was brought in to serve as the so-called ‘control group’ so the ruling wouldn’t be biased.
No decision ended up being made on the dog’s reaction, as the court experiment didn’t turn out too well. Both pooches were sent home.
Said the suspect’s lawyer Gregoire Lafarge ‘So if Tango lifted his right paw, moved his mouth or his tail, is he recognizing my client or not?’ I find it very troubling for the French legal system. If a judge ignores the demands of reason and surrounds himself with experts who are unreasonable, well the system becomes very dangerous.’