K9 Karim – Parsons, Kansas

Died 8/21/23
Handler – Officer Devin Wisdom

Parsons Police K9 passes away unexpectedly; investigation underway

The Parsons Police Department announced the death of one of its K9 officers.Police say K9, Karim, a 4-year-old Belgium Malinois, had worked a 12-hour shift on Monday and appeared to be fine when his handler placed him in his kennel yesterday. When the officer awoke, he found Karim dead inside his kennel. Officials with the department say the officer is devastated at the unexpected loss of his K9 partner who had been with him since 2021. According to the department, Karim was trained in tracking and narcotics detection and was one of the first members of Parsons K9 program.Karim has been sent to Kansas State University School of Veterinarian Medicine for autopsy to determine his cause of death. PPD says they guarantee full transparency in this matter and are conducting a joint investigation with the Labette County Sheriff’s Department into the circumstances surrounding Karim’s death. The department says they will try to partner with the Kansas Police Dog Association for guidance in the investigation.Details about Karim’s memorial and burial will be released after the autopsy results are returned.

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.