Representatives in Olympia have introduced a bill that would severely limit police officers’ force options in dangerous situations as well as their ability to successfully deescalate volatile situations. House Bill 1054, among other things, would ban the use of police K9s to arrest or apprehend suspects no matter how heinous the crime. This ban would take away one of law enforcement’s best de-escalation tools and ban the only weapon that can be recalled after being deployed.
Police K9s are highly trained dogs. To be certified for patrol work (detection work requires an extra 200 hours of training), a new K9 and its specific handler must go through 400 hours of training. The certification test includes, in addition to on and off leash obedience, recalls during which the K9 is sent to bite a “suspect,” but is called off by its handler once the suspect surrenders and before the K9 bites the suspect. After initial certification, K9 teams are required to train at least 16 hours a month, although many train more than that. The Spokane Police K9 Unit trains an average of 32 hours a month. K9 teams are required to recertify every two years, and many also certify through the Washington State Police Canine Association every one to two years.
The ability to recall K9s after deployment gives suspects more opportunity to peacefully surrender, making K9s a great de-escalation tool. Most suspects surrender when faced with the possibility of being bitten by a K9. In Spokane last year, only 3 percent of the 395 suspects captured by Spokane Police Department K9 teams were bitten. The severity of the injuries received by suspects who decide not to surrender depends on the amount they struggle against the dog and continue to resist arrest while the dog is biting them. K9s are trained to bite in one spot and hold that spot until they are told to release, thereby typically reducing injuries to bruises, scrape marks or puncture wounds.
As recently as Jan. 26, K9 Haywire from Spokane PD was credited with saving the life of his handler and a suspect. The suspect threw down his loaded firearm and peacefully surrendered to the police, later telling officers that he had surrendered so he wouldn’t get bit. Longtime Clark County residents may also remember when Vancouver PD K9 Dakota was shot and killed in 2007 by a suspect who had previously told someone that he was going to kill a cop. K9 Dakota possibly prevented the suspect and all the officers that day from getting shot.
It is important to remember that these dogs are not the dogs of the 1960s and 70s. The police K9 industry has gone through much reform in the past several decades. Current K9s are selected to be sociable and if found to be too headstrong or aggressive in training, they are sent back to the vendor.
Please ask your state representatives to vote “no” on HB 1054.
