August 21, 2026

NEW ORLEANS — Some of the work of justice happens in evidence, arguments and verdicts. Some happens in the quiet between a question and an answer when a frightened witness reaches down, feels a steady presence beside them and finds enough courage to continue.

On August 19, WWLTV named Karissa Justice, the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office’s first courthouse facility dog, its Patriot of the Week. Reporter Meg Farris’s interview recognized what survivors, witnesses and OPDA employees have seen since Karissa arrived in 2023: she can offer comfort where words fall short and connection where fear has built a wall.

The honor may carry Karissa’s name, but it also shines a light on her handler, Assistant District Attorney Meghan Falcon, and on a partnership built through training, trust and a shared commitment to people navigating some of the most difficult moments of their lives.

“Justice isn’t only what we do to the person who caused harm; it’s also what we do for the person who suffered it. True Justice has to make sure that we care for victims and survivors and next of kin, and Karissa is that.” — District Attorney Jason Williams

Meghan Falcon first came to OPDA in 2021 as a summer law clerk while studying at LSU’s Paul M. Hebert Law Center. After earning her J.D./D.C.L. in 2022, she returned that October as a full-time assistant district attorney, just months out of law school and at the beginning of her career as a prosecutor.

Within her first year, Meghan accepted a responsibility beyond a conventional legal role. After OPDA was selected to receive its first facility dog, Canine Companions matched her with Karissa. The pair spent a week in Texas in intensive, hands-on instruction, learning how Karissa’s specialized cues could support interviews, trial preparation and testimony.

Assistant District Attorney Meghan Falcon brought Karissa home to New Orleans and made room for her in every sense. Karissa Justice has beds throughout the building, and at day’s end, Meghan takes her home. Daily practice sustains the training. Trust sustains the bond that keeps Karissa calm, responsive and ready when someone needs her.

“The way survivors light up when they see Karissa Justice brings so much happiness to my heart.” — Assistant District Attorney Meghan Falcon, Karissa Justice’s handler

Karissa Justice is also a regular participant in the Barkus parade, New Orleans’ canine Carnival tradition. Alongside Meghan and OPDA staff, she trades the courthouse for the parade route and connects with the community she serves. The setting may be different, but the qualities people recognize in Karissa are the same: a calm spirit, a friendly presence, and an easy way of bringing people together.

Karissa is trained to do more than brighten a room. She can help a traumatized person regulate anxiety, remain beside a witness during preparation and sit in the witness box so that person does not face the courtroom alone. By August 2026, Karissa and Meghan had supported survivors and witnesses in more than 100 meetings and 24 trials.

In Meg Farris’s interview, Lurline Labeaud-Duncan returned to OPDA after more than two years and watched Karissa leap from a sofa to greet her. Karissa remembered Labeaud-Duncan. Lurline described how Karissa helped her young granddaughter find the confidence to testify, not by explaining the legal process, but by making the child feel she had a friend in the room.

That is the space Karissa fills. She does not ask for a painful story. She does not judge a pause, a tear, or a trembling hand. She simply stays, quietly reminding people that they are human before they are witnesses.

For a child preparing to talk about abuse, a survivor confronting the person who hurt them, or a mother preparing to speak about the loss of her child, Karissa can make an intimidating and unfamiliar process feel a little safer.

District Attorney Williams described the burden witnesses may face, and the difference Karissa can make:

“Imagine walking into a courtroom and being asked to relive one of the worst moments of your life from the witness stand, with a judge and jury listening, a room full of strangers watching, and the person accused of harming you only feet away. For victims and survivors, that fear is very real. Yet this is the extraordinary burden we sometimes ask them to bear in the pursuit of justice.

“Karissa cannot erase the trauma or make painful memories disappear. But she can sit beside someone through that difficult moment. She can offer comfort when words are hard to find, calm when fear takes hold, and the quiet reassurance that no one has to face such a moment alone.

“Sometimes, that is enough to help someone find the trust, strength, and courage to tell their story and take another step toward healing.”

Karissa and Meghan’s work also helped expose a gap in Louisiana law. Until this year, mandatory access to an available trained facility dog in court was limited to minors and witnesses with developmental disabilities. Adult survivors in sex-offense trials could be denied that support solely because of age.

OPDA Chief of Appeals Brad Scott drafted an expansion, and State Representative Mandie Landry authored House Bill 126. Signed as Act 616 and effective August 1, the law requires courts to allow any witness in a sex-offense trial to be accompanied by an available trained facility dog. Renamed Duvall and Karissa’s Law, the measure passed both legislative chambers without opposition.

Representative Landry said the bill’s passage demonstrated the broad support behind protecting crime victims and witnesses:

“At a time when it is difficult to find any agreement in politics, Baton Rouge and New Orleans were able to come together to support crime victims and witnesses. I am thankful for the hard work of the DA’s office, Office of Public Defenders, LDAA, and my fellow legislators in passing this important legislation.”

What began with one young prosecutor, one black Labrador and one office willing to try a more compassionate approach is now protection for survivors across Louisiana.

Karissa cannot explain public service. She practices it: show up, stay close and help another person carry what feels too heavy to carry alone. Her Patriot of the Week recognition honors that quiet service and OPDA team members who understand that accountability and compassion are not competing ideas. They are both part of justice.

The Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office congratulates Karissa Justice and Assistant District Attorney Meghan Falcon on this recognition and thanks WWL Louisiana and Meg Farris for sharing their story with New Orleans.

Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office
(504) 822-2414  |  communications@orleansda.com  |  orleansda.com