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LI Detective Struck By Drunk Driver Gains New Lease On Life With Service Dog

A Long Island police detective who defied the odds after a near-fatal crash is finding renewed strength with the help of a four-legged friend.

Nassau County Police Detective Kenneth Baribault and his new service dog, Lady.

Nassau County Police Detective Kenneth Baribault and his new service dog, Lady.

Photo Credit: Nassau County Police Department

Nassau County Police Detective Kenneth Baribault was introduced to his five-month-old service dog, Lady, during a ceremony at the department’s headquarters in Mineola on Wednesday, Jan. 15.

Baribault was nearly killed when a drunk driver struck him during a routine traffic stop on the Long Island Expressway in 2008. The crash left him with catastrophic injuries, including a traumatic brain injury. Doctors give him a 10 percent chance of survival.

Against all odds, and after spending months in a coma, Baribault learned how to walk and talk again. Seventeen years later, he continues his recovery, now aided by Lady the Labradoodle.

The specially trained companion, gifted by an anonymous donor, will assist Baribault with daily tasks and provide emotional support, Nassau County Police said.

Lady will officially join him at his home Saturday, Jan. 18, offering a new chapter of hope and companionship for a public servant who has already overcome so much.

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