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History of Police K-9
Historical overview
- Canines have been utilized as working dogs since ancient times
- Used in times of war before Christ
- Trained to attack enemy soldiers and protect their masters
- Used by Ancient Greeks to disclose where enemy was by sending
dog in and drawing fire to them
- Romans utilized dogs during battle and cut loose on enemy during
hand to hand combat
WWI
- Germany had 30,000 dogs ready to deploy By 1930, the "Dog War
School" at Frankfurt Germany turned out 2,000 dogs annually
- "Guide Dogs For The Blind" instituted in Germany during later
part of WWI
WWII
- Before Pearl Harbor, Germany sold 10,000 dogs to the Japanese
- America develops "military K-9 corps" in 1942
- In 1952, First United States Air Force Sentry Dog School at Showa
AS, Japan
- In 1953, Second USAF Sentry Dog School in Wiesbaden, Germany.
Police Service Dogs
- In 1890's, fist official use of canines for police service took
place in Ghent, Belgium.
- K-9's trained and used to assist in enforcement of laws on American
soil.
- Training and used different from "centurion" dogs once used by
military.
- In 1907, New York Police Department began an experimental police
canine program with dogs imported from Belgium. South Orange, New Jersey,
also started their K-9 program, followed by Glen Ridge, New Jersey in 1910.
Detroit, Michigan (1917), Berkeley, California (1930),
Pennsylvania State Police (1931), and Connecticut State Police (1944).
All but the Canadian program ended by the 1950's.
- In 1909, French ring sport was developed in Belgium, Brussels,
and Holland, seeding techniques for future police K-9 team exercises throughout
the continent.
- What we are dealing with in law enforcement is a situation that
does not even exist in a wartime environment. We have placed people in
urban warfare-type situations for 20 years with no relief. K-9 officers
in particular are on the front lines. Typically, a city officer will have
three calls waiting when he goes on shift, then dispatch keeps updating
the calls' there is court the next day. No wonder some officers have
to shut down in order to survive' we have no idea [how these officers'
got there, or what kind of people they were when they started. We have
no idea if the people who started resemble the people who are out there
now!
1960's
- The reputation of police service dogs was scarred because of their
use in the civil disputes of the 60's.
- Dogs used in many of these riots were shocking because they were
used as a "weapon", not a "tool" of law enforcement.
- Dogs became one symbol of racist repression.
- Units grew at a remarkable pace. Reached an apex in 1962-1963.
- Thereafter, the start-up rate dramatically decreased and the termination
rate began to increase.
1970's
- Realization that public opinion would not allow dogs in crowd-control
situations, due to civil disorder from previous decade. Contemporary use:
"Friendly" demonstrations at schools and public functions.
- Also a time of specialization. Increasing number of departments
deploying specialty dogs, detecting explosives, narcotics, and cadavers.
"Bite and fight" dogs no longer useful.
- Role of patrol dog began to expand, incorporating search and rescue
and the specialty roles. In 1971, the United States Police Canine
Association became the largest and oldest active organization of
its kind; "Ever striving for the betterment of all police K-9". In august,
1971, when two existing associations, Police Canine Association and the
United States K-9 Association, merged.
1980's – 1990's
- 1980's had seen more expansion of PSD units across the country.
- Public opinion, court decisions, and training changed police departments'
methods of law enforcement. Education and professionalism emphasized like
never before.
- 1992 Follow-up of INTERPOL survey determines Great Britain, European
Continent countries, and Canada, provide a minimum of 12-14 weeks
basic training for police dog teams.
- Policies change, training imperative.
- Protection from litigation and civil suits, PSD units now emphasize
the use of "reasonable force" in suspect apprehension. Dog and handler
must also perfect the concept of "direct control".
- Fair Labor Standards Act issues affect departments. Again, we
see a decrease in programs throughout the country.
1990's - 2000
- By 2000, the order of magnitude of police service dog programs
in the United States had fluctuated between 300 and over 700 agencies.
Lawsuits resulting from implementation of the FLSA as applied to K-9 teams
ended many U.S. Programs, including some of the largest, such as the highly
productive K-9 unit of the Chicago Police Department, and the most remote,
such as the Alaska Department of Corrections K-9 unit,
Seward, Alaska.
- In 1997, Police Dog Tactics Training, deployment, and K-9 academy
instruction information for police and rescue dog handlers and administrators,
including specialized POST courses.
Canine Specialized Support Teams
- SAR
- In 1974, first dog trained for forensic (cadaver) search by a
police department began work.
- In 1975, first California rescue dog unit, WOOF, Inc. (Wilderness
Finders, Inc.) Was dispatched by El Dorado County Sheriff's Department,
currently by Marin County Sheriff's Department, traveling worldwide via
U.S. Military, to assist search for missing persons, disaster victims,
and to perform forensic detection. SAR Trained to locate human scent. [Non-aggressive
find.]
- Human remains detection dog (HRD). Trained to locate human decomposition.
[Will not alert on live human scent.] NOT cross-trained for other work.
Institute for canine forensics. Evidence detection/scent discrimination
dogs.
2001
- "Law Enforcement Canines", designed to accompany the Model Policy
on Law Enforcement Canines established by the IACP National Law Enforcement
Policy Center.
Today, civilian law enforcement agencies and military
units throughout the world use police K-9 in widely ranging detection and
apprehension functions. The demand for dogs is high, and the volume of
case law affecting their deployment has grown to maintain the highest possible
level of professionalism is clear, trained law enforcement K-9.
Acknowledgement: Tylero
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