New Orleans DA seeks $2,000 for courthouse dog
(The Center Square) – The New Orleans District Attorney's Office is seeking $2,000 to care for Karissa, a black Labrador retriever who comforts crime victims and witnesses, bringing the office's expenses for the dog to more than $8,000 since 2023. The proposed expenditure comes months after Louisiana lawmakers passed legislation expanding the use of specially trained facility dogs in courtrooms, a measure that was approved without a published fiscal note estimating its potential cost to taxpayers. Karissa, who joined the Orleans Parish District Attorney's Office in 2023, is among a small number of facility dogs working in Louisiana's criminal justice system. Unlike some other jurisdictions, where judges or handlers personally cover the animals' expenses, the New Orleans office budgets money for Karissa's care. According to budget documents submitted to the New Orleans City Council, the office spent $2,020 on its facility-dog program in 2023, $1,329 in 2024 and $1,355 in 2025. Revised expenditures for 2026 total $1,512, while the office is requesting $2,000 for 2027. The combined actual expenditures and projected budgets total approximately $8,216 over five years. In a statement, the district attorney's office said the latest request includes approximately $1,100 for veterinary care, up to $450 for food
