K9 Joker – Indian River County, Florida

Died 4/21/21
Handler – Deputy Mindy Mangel

Deputies and staff at the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office are mourning the loss of Joker, a Belgian Malinois who died Wednesday during K-9 training. The 18-month-old Joker came from the Czech Republic and had been with the agency since February, officials said. He was halfway through his training hours with Deputy Mindy Mangel on Wednesday when Joker accidentally swallowed a training aid that became lodged in his throat, according to the Sheriff’s Office. Joker was rushed to the Live Oak Animal Hospital in Vero Beach, but emergency efforts to save him were unsuccessful. “Our agency is heartbroken over the loss of Joker,” Sheriff Eric Flowers said Thursday. “Three new handlers and K-9s started at the same time earlier this year and all had bonded so well with our existing team. “Though he hasn’t been with us long,” added Flowers, “he really made a big impression.” Mangel and Joker had started March 8 to complete their 480-hour Patrol K9 School training, officials said. Joker, officials said, “excelled in every evolution of training he was taught and progressed to the point that he would have had the ability to certify under the (Florida Department of Law Enforcement) state guidelines even though he was only half way through school.” Joker was one of three K-9s undergoing training to work alongside deputies to perform criminal apprehension and assist in the agency’s narcotics division and bomb squad. The Sheriff’s Office has nine active K-9s, including Gracie, a Labrador retriever-mix therapy dog and Willow, a bloodhound search-and-rescue dog.

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Submitted By Jim Cortina

James A. Cortina has been involved with police dogs since 1972 and currently on the Board of Directors for the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. Jim has been appointed as Treasurer since its inception in 1991. Jim is one of the charter members of the C.P.W.D.A. organization. Since 1975 he has been a certified professional dog trainer and received his Master Trainer Certification in 1985. During his career he has provided armed K-9 strike crowd control for security agencies in Connecticut and out of state security companies. In conjunction with other members of the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. Board of Directors, he helped to draft Connecticut Statute 53-247(e) "Intentional Injury or Killing of Police K-9" which was passed by the Senate in 1993 and also assisted in implementing the prestigious Daniel Wasson Memorial K-9 Award in 1992. In 1993 he helped coordinate the North American Police Work Dog Association Nationals in New London, Connecticut. He was appointed Training Director for the New London County Work Dog Association from 1985-1987. He performed decoy work for Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc. in police K-9 demonstrations, trained several local police department canines, and coordinated training workshops for out-of-state police departments. He participated in the United States Police K-9 Association Trials in Croton on Hudson, New York in 1985 as a decoy. He is an avid photographer and received photography awards in 1989, 1990, and 1991 and currently takes photographs for the Connecticut Police Work Dog Association Inc.
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