In Loving Memory of
K9 URAC
October 9, 2014
Handler: Sgt. Scott Hedrick
Columbia Police Department
701 E. Broadway
P.O. Box 6015
Columbia, Missouri 65205
Police mourn the loss of loyal
K-9
Just recently, Urac and Hedrick were
part of a team that got certified to be
K-9 educators through the Missouri
Police Canine Association. At that time
Hedrick said CPD hopes to have two more
dogs added to the K-9 unit within the
next couple of years.
One of the Columbia Police Department's four
police dogs died Thursday. K-9 Officer Urac
had been ill for many months and
according to a police statement, "all
options to help him, sadly did not work."
The statement said Urac spent his final
moments
with handler and friend Sgt. Scott Hedrick by his side. "He was loved by
our community and was a beloved member of
our
department," said Public Information Officer Latisha Stroer. Urac was born
on December 16, 2008 in the Czech Republic
and joined the Columbia Police Department eighteen months later. "Urac had
a long and distinguished career with our
department, assisting officers in locating
narcotics and capturing offenders," Stroer
said. "Urac will be sorely missed as we
remember his loyal service and constant friendship." The department's "End
of Watch" notice on the dog's death said,
"Rest in Peace Urac. Thank you for
your service buddy, we'll take it from
here."
submitted by
Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA
In Loving
Memory of
K9 URICH
July 12, 2014
Handler: Officer
Robert Unruh
Blue Springs Police Department
1100 SW
Smith St.
Blue Springs, MO
Blue
Springs police dog dies
Urich, one of the first dogs to serve in the Blue
Springs police department’s K-9 unit, died Saturday
afternoon during
an emergency medical procedure, police officials said
Sunday. The German Shepherd from the Czech Republic
worked with Officer Robert Unruh. The department introduced its first K-9
unit in 2006 with a grant from
the Federal Government covering the training costs for
the dogs and their handlers.
Services for Urich had not been determined as of Sunday morning.
submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA
MORE:
Blue Springs
police hold funeral service for K-9 officer
Police say
K-9 Urich died of natural causes
Blue Springs police were mourning the loss
of one of their police dogs Thursday. Dozens
attended the memorial service for K-9 Urich.
“We consider the K-9 it’s a K-9 officer,”
said Jason Floyd of Blue Springs Police
Department. Like any partnership, a K-9
relationship is built on trust. “He has to
learn to trust me, that I’m not going to put
him in unnecessary harm, and I have
to learn to trust him, that his nose is
always right,” Floyd said. Urich passed away
from natural causes while serving his last
year on the police force. “He was in service
for the police department for seven years,
eight months and two days,” said
Sgt. Mike Russell of the Blue Springs Police
Department. Floyd said he understands the
heartache of losing a K-9 partner.
“I spend more time with this dog than I do my own family. He’s there all
the time,” Floyd said.
submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA
In
Loving Memory of
K9 UMBERTO
March 4, 2014
Handler: Cpl. Christopher Eiserman
Folcroft Police
Department
1555 N Elmwood Ave
Folcroft, PA
After
euthanizing his longtime K9 partner “Umberto” Tuesday night,
Folcroft police Cpl. Christopher Eiserman sought a
continuance for a drug case listed Wednesday morning on Senior Magisterial
District Judge Horace Z. Davis’
court docket. Instead, Davis surprisingly tossed the case on its first
listing, apparently saying the officer’s
reason for seeking a continuance “was not valid,” Eiserman said Wednesday
night. “Not valid? I was on the
vet’s floor bawling my eyes out,” the veteran law enforcement officer said
of his situation less than
12 hours before he was due in Davis’ court for the preliminary hearing.
And after leaving the vet’s office late
Tuesday, Eiserman went home to face the difficult task of cleaning
out
the Umberto’s space and belongings. “It was a long night,” Eiserman said.
“I was mourning the loss
of a partner I had since 2006.” Contacted Wednesday night, Davis
responded, “There is no discussion on it.
” Eiserman, who was due in court at about 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, said
he returned to the police station
in the wee hours Wednesday and wrote a letter requesting the
continuance, as per the judge’s policy.
He left the letter for the police secretary.
The court case in question involved
Dennis McKenzie, a 36-year-old Darby Township man who allegedly had
150 grams of marijuana when he was arrested on charges including
possession with the intent to
deliver in January, according to authorities. “I followed up the
letter with a phone call Wednesday morning.
I spoke directly to the police secretary. She spoke to the court clerk,
who said it was OK,” Eiserman said.
“There’s never been any problem like this before. It’s common.” It was
about mid-morning Wednesday when
Eiserman said he received a phone call from another officer who was in the
courtroom who said,
“The judge dismissed your case.”
According to Folcroft Officer Tom Kesser,
who was in the courtroom for an unrelated matter, Davis dismissed
the charges against McKenzie, despite attempts by the assistant district
attorney to explain Eiserman’s
absence. “She was very professional,” Kesser said of the newly
assigned prosecutor whose name escaped him.
“She told the judge that the officer had a death in the family,
which he did,” Kesser said. Kesser doesn’t
believe that Davis at that point knew that the prosecutor was
referring to Eiserman’s K-9 partner as the family
member. “He just said something along the line that it wasn’t reason
enough to grant a continuance,” Kesser said.
When another case on the docket requiring
testimony from Eiserman was called, Kesser said the prosecutor
again requested a continuance because of a death in the officer’s
family. Kesser said Davis then made a comment
along the lines, “What? A dog?” Recognizing the bond between Eiserman and
Umberto, Kesser said he told
the judge, “It’s not just a dog. It’s his partner for 12 years.”
Kesser said his outburst drew no immediate
response from Davis. Davis then granted a two-week continuance in that
case. The defendant in that case
is Tyrone Smith, who is charged with felony firearms and related offenses,
according to online court records.
Smith’s
defense attorney Enrique Latoison said Wednesday night that he was
not opposed to a continuance
after hearing about Eiserman’s loss from another officer, Shane Coyle.
According to Latoison, the prosecutor
never explained to Davis that it was Eiserman’s K-9 partner that had
died. The docket wasn’t overly busy,
but steady, and Davis wasn’t playing favorites, he said. Folcroft Cpl.
William Bair said he spoke privately
with Davis on Eiserman’s behalf. “I just wanted to make sure the judge
understood that the dog was a
K-9, a member of the police department,” Bair said. “The judge basically
told me that it was his call
and we could be rearrested.”
Umberto was almost 12 years old and was suffering with hip dysplasia and
arthritis.
submitted by Jim Cortina, Dir. CPWDA
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Memorials
to Fallen K-9s