K9 Ringo – McFarland, California

Died – 3/7/18
Handler – Sergeant Jerrod Place

McFarland Police Department K-9 dies one-year after retiring

On Thursday McFarland Police announce that retired K-9 Ringo died earlier this week. According to McFarland PD, Ringo died on Wednesday. Ringo retired from MPD in January of 2017 after serving over six years with the department. He served as a dual-purpose patrol dog locating narcotics, evidence, juveniles and assisted with the apprehension of suspects. Ringo was used during situations when it was otherwise unsafe for officers and posed a significant risk to them. Ringo spent his retirement years with his family and handler Sergeant Jerrod Place. McFarland PD wrote “We would like to thank Ringo for all his service and much dedication to the MPD and citizens of McFarland. Rest easy Ringo, we will take it from here.”

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.