K9 Leo – Spokane, Washington

Died – 1/29/20
Handler – Officer Craig

Spokane Police officer mourns the loss of his K9 companion, Leo

With heavy hearts, the Spokane Police Department said goodbye to one of their K9 companions on Wednesday. Leonidas (Leo) began his career with the Police Department’s K9 Unit in 2008. He died at home this week from what appeared to be a heart attack, his handler said in a post to Facebook. In a heartfelt letter, Leo’s handler Officer Craig went into detail about their adventures together in Leo’s nine years on the streets. According to Officer Craig, Leo was even popular with the ‘bad guys.’ In one instance, he recalled the time a guy who Leo had captured multiple times over the years told Officer Craig he planned to name is first born child after the 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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