K9 Atlas – Marana, Arizona

Died 6/23/21
Handler – Officer Brad Barton

Marana in mourning after Police K9 Atlas dies while on duty

The law enforcement community is in mourning after a Marana Police Department K9 officer died while on duty Wednesday night. On Wednesday evening, Officer Brad Barton and his partner K9 Officer Atlas were finishing up their shift for the night when Barton reportedly recognized that his dog was unusually quiet while on patrol. When the officer checked on his partner, he discovered he passed away. According to a post shared by MPD Thursday, Atlas was ceremoniously escorted to Pima Animal Care Center by MPD and Tucson Police Department that day. Atlas completed K9 Basic Patrol Narcotics School back in January 29, 2020 after completing 400 hours of training. MPD said Atlas’ death was unexpected. A necropsy will be performed in order to determine the cause of death.

Tags

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.
| Old Memorials | Site Map
Copyright © 1973 - 2024 Louise Krause Memorials to Fallen K-9's Hosted By PC-GEEK Site Maintained BY Jim Cortina