THE WHOLE WOOF AND NOTHING BUT THE WOOF!
In what is believed to be a world’s first, the judge in a murder case stunned those in a courtroom by inviting a dog to take the stand as a witness.
Scooby the dog was with his 59-year-old owner when she was found hanged from the ceiling of her Paris apartment.
Police believe it was suicide, but her family demanded a murder investigation.
In dogged pursuit of the truth, French authorities hope Scooby can collar the villain, having already played a leading role during a preliminary court hearing in Nanterre, a Paris suburb.
During the hearing, the judge ordered the pet to be led into the witness box by a vet to see how it reacted to a suspect.
During “testimony,” Scooby reportedly responded by “barking furiously” after being taken out of the kennel and into the witness box by a vet.
Judge Thomas Cassuto praised the mongrel for his “exemplary behavior and invaluable assistance.” But lawyers growled their disgust – insisting the bizarre spectacle “proved nothing.”
One attorney said: “Human evidence is unreliable enough, let alone canine evidence.
“Besides, the victim died two and a half years ago, which is close to 17 dog years! How is the animal supposed to remember that far back?”
A spokesman for the Palais de Justice in Paris confirmed that this was the first time a dog had appeared as a witness in criminal proceedings in France.
He said he was “almost certain” it was also a world’s first. “It was a preliminary hearing, and now the judge will decide if there is enough evidence to go to trial.”
The canine Sherlock Holmes was named after the timid cartoon crime buster Scooby Doo, who continually solves crime mysteries with the help of four American teenagers.
Published on: 10/01/2008
