The horse behind the badge
What is white, stands at 17 hands, weighs 400 lbs shy of a ton and wears designer shoes? The answer is Bismark, one of three horses that make up the mounted unit of N.C. State’s Campus Police.
Started in 2006 when officer Lillian Moore donated her horse to the program, the most recent additions came from an outside source. The Fayetteville Police Department donated two horses from their disbanded mounted unit, one of which being Bismark and the other his friend Cowboy.
When asked why the department chose the name Bismark, Director of Campus Police Tom Younce laughed a little, said to “wait and see,” and shortly thereafter an imperial white giant trotted through the trees.
According to Younce, Bismark is named after the mammoth World War II battleship USS Bismarck. His dedicated service to the N.C. State community has earned him a badge of his own. He is a good tempered horse, but his size is truly intimidating.
Bismark’s rider, Officer Fitzpatrick, is training him to handle crowds and loud noises, including sirens and helicopter noise. It is important that the horses are accustomed to these sorts of alarming conditions so they do not spook and throw their riders, or kick in a crowd, Fitzpatrick said. While Bismark is quite gentlemanly and calm, he is very energetic.
“He’s a big boy, and the trouble is, he knows it,” Fitzpatrick said.
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Blinded Raoul Moat PC David Rathband’s mission to inspire cops
The policeman blinded by crazed gun killer Raoul Moat is to go back to work as a motivational speaker.
Pc David Rathband hopes to travel the country giving inspirational talks to fellow bobbies about his ordeal.
Just four weeks ago doctors told the officer his sight cannot be saved. But the dad-of-two is determined to go back to policing.
R.I.P., Dan
An 8 yr-old German shepherd named Dan served as an explosive detection K-9 for the Halifax County Sheriff’s office for the past 5 years. Dan died on Monday and a memorial will be held this morning in his honor at the Hockaday Funeral and Cremation Service.
Dan was found under the car port of citizen, Joe Thomas on Tuesday. Thomas took the dog to Roanoke Animal Hospital where veterinarians confirmed that he was dead. The dog died from a blunt force trauma – possibly from being struck by a vehicle.
The dog had apparently been either let out of his kennel, or had somehow escaped. When his handler, Corp. Mike Almendarez, went to let Dan out on Monday, he discovered that the dog was missing.
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DEA wants to hire Ebonics translators
Wanted by the Drug Enforcement Administration: Ebonics translators.
It might sound like a punch line, as “Ebonics” — the common name for what linguists call African-American English — has long been the butt of jokes, as well as the subject of controversy.
But the agency is serious about needing nine people to translate conversations picked up on wiretaps during investigations, Special Agent Michael Sanders said Tuesday. A solicitation was sent to contractors as part of a request to companies to provide hundreds of translators in 114 languages.
“DEA’s position is, it’s a language form we have a need for,” Sanders said. “I think it’s a language form that DEA recognizes a need to have someone versed in to conduct investigations.”
The translators, being hired in the agency’s Southeast Region — which includes Atlanta, Georgia; Washington; New Orleans, Louisiana; Miami, Florida; and the Caribbean — would listen to wiretaps, translate what was said and be able to testify in court if necessary, he said.
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Dog show proceeds to help Sheriff’s Office acquire new K-9
The upcoming Cotton Land Cluster of Dog Shows is more than a place for pets to be put on display, it is also a huge economic boost for the area.
The shows will begin Sept. 3 at the Monroe Civic Center and will be dedicated in the memory of Ouachita Parish K-9 officer Cpl. J.R. Searcy and Bayou Kennel Club supporter J.E. Faler. Searcy was killed in the line of duty earlier this year.
Alana Cooper, executive director of the Monroe-West Monroe Convention and Visitors Bureau, said this is the 38th year for the event and it has many benefits for the community.
“Last year it had a $2 million impact, and the event keeps growing,” Cooper said. “It is a family-friendly event, and people can come out and bring their kids.”
Proceeds from the event are used for local scholarships and to benefit the Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit.
The Sheriff’s Office currently has two dogs and are searching for another. Chuckie, a German Shepherd, and Popeye, a black Labrador retriever, were guests at the kickoff news conference on Wednesday.
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Barnidge: A police dog is the best friend an officer could want
ANTIOCH police welcomed back a hero last week, just four days after he suffered a gunshot wound while subduing a suspected burglar. He took part in a training session as if it were any other day on the job, fairly ignoring the scar on his right shoulder.
Lt. John VanderKlugt wasn’t surprised.
“Thor is a tough dog,” he said.
No one appreciates police dogs more than police officers, who marvel at the courage of their four-legged buddies in rooting out bad guys.
Vander-Klugt, who manages the Antioch K-9 unit, said a trained dog can be the difference between a suspect escaping and surrendering without a fight.
“The instance with Thor received a lot of notoriety,” he said, “and whenever a dog makes an apprehension, it’s in the news. What doesn’t get the recognition is the number of times a suspect gives up after we announce we are sending in the dog. It happens all the time.”
The secret to K-9 success is the bond between handler and dog. When an officer selects his partner — German shepherds and Belgian Malinois are favored in Antioch — the two become constant companions. They work the same hours, live together and typically are teamed for a minimum of four years. The dog becomes a member of the officer’s family.
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Police hope to expand K-9 force with 2nd dog
Brookings Police Department’s drug detection dog Charger is doing a great job, but police are looking to take a bigger bite out of crime by giving him a canine counterpart – a German shepherd-type dog trained to protect officers.
A fundraising golf tournament to raise money to purchase and maintain such a dog is scheduled for Sept. 18. Meanwhile, the department will continue to rely on Charger as their number one tool in regional anti-drug efforts.
Meet Charger
Charger is a bouncy, friendly four-year-old black Labrador retriever handled by Officer Dustin Watson.
On Aug. 4, at the request of the Oregon State Police, Charger and Watson discovered 4 pounds of marajuana in a car on Highway 101.
It’s far from the first drug bust Charger and Watson have made.
“We have seized marijuana, methamphetamine and hashish,” Watson said.
Charger has also found syringes and metal and glass pipes.
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Black police officers come to Sacramento to remember the fallen
Over 100 African-American police officers from as far away as the United Kingdom marched in Sacramento’s Oak Park neighborhood Thursday in honor of their fallen brothers and sisters.
The National Black Police Association holds the march annually in different cities each year. The march is part of their week-long training seminars.
“Out of the 800,000 police officers we have in America, only 10 or 11 percent of them are African-American,” NBPA executive director Ronald Hampton said.
The march is actually based on an event that happened in Boston, Mass., back in the mid 1970s.
African-American children were being bused into white neighborhoods to go to school and it was causing stress on Caucasian police officers due to segregation issues. Black police decided to take a pro-active approach and escort these black children into the white areas safely.
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HPD K-9 officer and handler are on the job
K-9 officer Brisco is back on the job for the Hudson Police Department with his new partner K-9 handler and police officer Bob Larson. Photo by Margaret A. Ontl
After nearly a year off, K-9 officer Brisco, a Belgian Malinois-German Shepherd hybrid, is back in service at the Hudson Police Department with his new partner Officer and K-9 handler Bob Larson.
Larson, a 1999 Hudson High School graduate, went into law enforcement after graduating of University of Minnesota at Mankato with a degree in law enforcement.
It was not a lifelong goal; in fact, his father HPD Lt. Paul Larson discouraged it.
“It turned out to be my area of interest,” said Larson, who has been in the field for over five years, the last three with HPD.
Larson, applied for the position of K-9 handler last year, when the department restarted its canine program after several years off.
This year he applied again and earned the position. Larson and Brisco reported to St. Paul Police Canine Unit training facility on March 8 for three months of intense training.
Brisco, a three-year-old had been through the training last year with then K-9 handler, Todd Ludvig, who later resigned the position.
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