K9 Max – Chicago, Illinois

Died 1/28/24
Handler – Officer Al Hadac

Chicago police are mourning the loss of two K9 officers who died in less than a month.According to Chicago police, K9 officer Lun died suddenly while on duty on Monday and K9 officer Max died on Sunday, Jan. 28, following an illness.Officers paid tribute to the two fallen K9s in a social media post on Tuesday afternoon, thanking the dogs for their service to the city.“We thank K9 Lun and K9 Max for their service to Chicago. They will be missed. Please keep their Canine Handler partners in your thoughts,” the post read in part.Police say K9 Lun and his handler, Officer Michael DeMarco, who had been together since June of 2018, worked together detecting explosives at O’Hare Airport and on public transit.Officers say K9 Max, who passed away after suffering a brief yet aggressive illness, had worked with his handler, Officer Al Hadac, since May 2015.

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.