K9 Mattis – Crossville, Tennessee

Died 4/13/23
Handler – Lt. Jonathan O’Neal

Crossville K9 dies after 6 years of law enforcement service

Crossville Police Department officials are mourning the loss of one of their own. The police department announced that one of their K-9 officers, Mattis, died on Thursday.Mattis, a six-year law enforcement veteran, was taken to the University of Tennessee Veterinary Medical Center with an ongoing illness.Unable to heal from his illness, Mattis was euthanized shortly after arriving to limit his suffering.“Thank you, K-9 Mattis,” CPD officials said. “Your watch is over.”The 7-year-old Shepherd-Malinois mix began his service with his handler, Lt. Jonathan O’Neal, in 2017.Serving as a K9 patrol with the Crossville Police Department, K9 Mattis has had a distinguished service history, always exceeding expectations and performing his important mission with the utmost reliability and drive,” CPD officials said.A new K-9 is expected to begin training before the end of 2023.

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.