K9 Rocco – Visalia, California

Died 10/16/19

Tulare County police dog killed after chasing rabbit

A procession of Tulare County sheriff’s deputies transported the body of a fallen K9 deputy to a local veterinarian on Wednesday night. K9 deputy “Rocco” was hit and killed by a car on Avenue 328 in Visalia, according to sheriff’s officials. Rocco and his handler stopped for a bathroom break when Rocco took off running after a rabbit, according to Ashley Ritchie, spokeswoman for the sheriff. The rabbit ran into the roadway and Rocco followed. Within seconds, Rocco was hit by a car. Rocco was a 1-year- old Belgian Malinois. He’d been on the force since May. “K9 deputies are as much a part of our department as their human counterparts,” Ritchie said. “They are heroes who work tirelessly every day to keep our communities safe. And to lose one is to lose a very valuable and loved member of the (sheriff’s department).” This is the second K9 deputy killed or injured in as many months. In September, a Tulare County police dog was shot in the neck while chasing a carjacking suspect in west Tulare. The person who shot the dog was an undercover Tulare County detective, according to sheriff’s officials. Jack confused the deputy with the suspect. He then lunged at the detective, who fired one round at Jack. The dog was hit once in the neck and rushed to a local veterinary. Jack was then taken into surgery. He has since been tested and recertified for duty, according to Ritchie. Police dogs are costly to maintain. The dog alone can cost departments between $7,000 and $10,000. On Saturday, Small Town Cruizers started raising money for TCSO’s K9 Unit. The car club helped the department purchase K9 deputy “Cruizer” four years ago. The club recently donated $20,000 to Tulare Police Department’s K9 Unit.

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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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