The St. Albans Police Department (SAPD) has a fully staffed K-9 corps to assist officers in several different investigative and tactical situations.

The K-9 section is made up of three dog and handler teams. Team 1 is Lt. Timmy Kemper and his partner “Dasty,” a four year old German Shepherd. Lt. Kemper is also the officer in charge of the K-9 section. Team 2 is Sgt. Mike Dlugos and his partner “Dutch” and team 3 is Sgt. Jim Butler and K-9 “Deuce.”

Any SAPD officer may request assistance from the K-9 section at any time. If there is not a K-9 team on duty, the shift commander may call a team out if it is needed. The K-9 teams are also available to assist other agencies, however deployment outside the city needs to be approved by Lt. Kemper or the shift commander. In any deployment, the handler will have the final say on how or if the K-9 is deployed.

The dogs of the SAPD K-9 corps are all German Shepherd dogs. Dasty and Dutch are from Holland. Deuce is the first generation of his bloodline born in the United States, of German parents. The dogs and handlers all received training at Battle Ridge K-9, in Boone County, WV.

All three dogs are “dual purpose” K-9s. They are trained to find narcotics, track individuals and assist in patrol and apprehension. The dogs and handlers are constantly training to expand and improve their capabilities.

Deuce “indicating” on marijuana hidden in grill of a pick-up truck.

The SAPD K-9s are trained to find, by scent, narcotics/controlled substances commonly encountered by law enforcement in this area. The substances that the dogs can locate include, but may not be limited to, marijuana, cocaine, heroin, LSD, methamphetamine, crack-cocaine, as well as commonly abused prescription narcotics ritalin, lortabs and oxycontin.

The dogs are trained to find the substances in buildings and vehicles. The dogs “indicate” the presence a substance by sitting, or in some cases standing, and looking at the area where the substance is. This “passive indication” prevents the dog being injured by dangerous substances and protects property and evidence from damage.

The K-9 is sensitive enough to “indicate” even residue in areas where a substance had been in the past. The dogs will indicate on very small amounts of substance, to include marijuana seeds.

Environmental factors, such as wind direction or ventilation systems can affect the accuracy of the dogs “indication” but will rarely prevent the dog from finding a substance.

During searches the handler will determine if the dog will be used on or off lead (leash) and the safe distance for observers. Officers assisting the K-9 may be asked to keep suspects and other observers away from the search area. Assisting officers may also be asked to detain suspects and to help search any area that the K-9 has “indicated” on.

Dutch, hot on the trail.

Tracking is another valuable ability the SAPD K-9s bring to the department. SAPD officers need to understand the basics of the K-9 tracking methods.

SAPD K-9s track by following the scent of pheromones which are exuded by everyone. Persons under stress produce pheromones in large quantities. Physical exertion, fear, anger or a range of other emotions can cause stress. Pheromones are emitted by a subject and fall off the body. Since they are heavier than air, pheromones settle to the ground and are held by vegetation.

The K-9 handler will take his K-9 to the spot where the subject to be tracked was last seen and instruct the K-9 to find the scent and follow it. The dog knows what is wanted and will sniff and “imprint” the scent and start to follow the subject.

In addition to tracking and finding dope, the SAPD K-9s are trained to assist in patrol and apprehension work. The dogs are an asset that can be used in several ways to increase officer safety.

Proper utilization of the K-9s can prevent situations, which are potentially dangerous, from escalating to the point that officer or other persons are injured.

Dasty giving instructions!

The sight of a German Shepherd ready for business is all it will take to convince most people to comply with officer’s instructions.

In the event that a subject is hiding in a building, violent or refusing to comply with officer instructions the K-9 can be deployed to ensure compliance and apprehension with less risk to officer safety.

When commanded by the handler, a K-9 will chase and/or find a suspect and “hold” a suspect until the handler gives the command to release the suspect. This command will be given when the suspect complies with instructions and the handler feels it is safe for officers to take control of the suspect.

During the K-9 deployment, the K-9 handler will give all commands to both the suspect and the K-9. All bystanders and other officers should remain silent and not approach the suspect until the handler has taken control of the dog and instructs back-up officers to take control of the suspect.

K-9 vehicles are equipped with a “bail-out” feature. This allows the handler to automatically open a back door, allowing the K-9 to exit the car to assist the handler or pursue a suspect.