INVOLVED IN 80 DIFFERENT CASES: Lol is the dog who helps crime victims PHOTO

Lol, a five-year-old black Labrador, helps crime victims face their attacker in court, and also helps them open up to the police and assist the investigation.

A man in handcuffs sits on a bench waiting for the judge to appear. He is escorted by two police officers from the nearby prison.

These are typical scenes in courtrooms across France, but there is one interesting detail here.

Meanwhile, a mother and her two daughters stand close to their lawyer, working out a strategy before they go before the court. It looks like a "nasty divorce".

The chief prosecutor in this part of south-west France wanders the corridors in his robes with a beautiful, well-groomed but muscular black Labrador on a lead.

Lawyers and court staff come out of their offices to pet the five-year-old dog named Lol, reports the BBC.

Two years ago, Lol became the first dog in Europe to help crime victims, especially those who have suffered violence and sexual abuse.

He knows the court better than any employee.

Trained to stay calm

This Labrador has been trained to stay calm around strangers, including children.

He can cope with the tension, the raised voices and the emotional situations during cross-examinations, or the moment when a victim of a sexual crime comes face to face with their rapist.

"After the cross-examination I called the dog in to help, because I believed his presence would help the victim open up about what happened, or during testimony in court," said prosecutor Frédéric Almendros.

"The dog sits next to the victim in court and helps them relieve the stress," he adds.

Lol has been involved in 80 different cases, with victims aged from three to 90.

In one case, an elderly couple were traumatised by a violent burglary, and the dog helped them explain to the police what had happened.

Alexia Meste runs the local branch of a national charity called "France Victimes". Around 600 people a year receive help from her and her colleagues, many of them victims of sexual abuse within the family.

"Lol is trained to stand next to the victims, and that physical contact helps them face the challenges that await them in court," she says.

Bringing "humanity" into the legal system

Unlike the courts in big French cities, where crimes are often linked to drugs, in the rural department of Lot sexual abuse and domestic violence make up the majority of criminal cases.

At first, Mustapha Issafi, a family lawyer and head of the local bar association, had to persuade his not very understanding colleagues to take part in the project of trials with a dog. Now, lawyers often call Lol in to help when they feel a case could move forward.

"We believe in this programme, the dog has a specific role, he takes part in the whole court process and brings humanity into the entire system," he told the BBC.

This model has proved so successful over the past two years that other courts across France have "borrowed" Lol. Several courts now have dogs of their own.

At the moment, the dogs have no official status in French courts, but that could soon change.

Lol has become famous all over France.

He was even taken to the European Parliament to take part in a seminar on crime and victim support. And when French President Emmanuel Macron, who also has a black Labrador, spent two days in Lot this month, he asked what Lol eats and what his temperament is like.