Police chief makes pItch for a k-9 unit for Emporia department
By Joey Berlin
Originally published 01:46 p.m., February 28, 2008
Updated 01:46 p.m., February 28, 2008
Emporia Police Chief Gary Smith made his case Wednesday that the police department needs a non-human officer to help it take the proverbial bite out of crime.
At Wednesday’s city commission work session, Smith told commissioners about the department’s desire to train a canine officer and implement a K-9 program. The Lyon County Sheriff’s office has a K-9 unit, and the Kansas Highway Patrol has a police dog stationed in Emporia, but the city doesn’t have one of its own.
Smith said getting one for the police department wouldn’t be a duplication of any services now available from the highway patrol or sheriff’s office dogs. He said although the sheriff’s office will make its dog available to the city, sometimes the animal is unavailable because it’s tired after a long assignment, or the officer trained to work with it has already worked a 10-hour shift.
“We’ve had conversations ... to make sure that we try to have the dogs scheduled so they’re not all working at the same time,” Smith said of the dogs that would represent each of the three police entities. “Ideally, it could save us all bringing somebody in on overtime if one of the dogs is available, so that’s part of what we’re exploring. So we’ll work in conjunction.”
Smith told the commission that a K-9 officer does much more than the drug interdictions it is often associated with. He said police dogs provide additional safety for officers in missions to search buildings and track missing persons.
Smith said there are a variety of different methodologies used to train police dogs; the police department would want more of a “locate and bark-type dog, as opposed to a locate and bite-type dog.”
The startup costs to acquire the dog and associated equipment is a little more than $15,000, which Smith said has already been raised in cash and commitments from Emporia residents and businesses. The officer selected to handle the dog would travel to Texas to do so and transport the animal back to Emporia. That officer would then take a 10-week training course in Topeka. The department would pay those expenses.
The K-9 unit is not meant to be revenue-generating. Ongoing expenses resulting from such a program haven’t been estimated at this point.
Vice-Mayor Bob Agler, who was running the session in place of absent Mayor Julie Johnson, and Commissioner Jeff Longbine both expressed concerns about the program affecting the city budget. Commissioners agreed to move forward on the issue, but Agler said that if the potential K-9 unit looked to become a budgetary problem later, the city would want to look at it again.
City Manager Matt Zimmerman said he felt the case had been made that the unit wouldn’t be a budget problem. But Zimmerman said he supported the commission’s position.
In other activity Wednesday, the city:
• Considered changes to a draft of the zoning regulations for a shooting range permit within city limits. One of the major changes in the new draft prohibits an outdoor shooting range to be within a quarter-mile of the exterior wall of a commercial building. The next step will be to schedule a public hearing on the regulations.
• Examined a revised ordinance that would create an accessibility advisory committee within the community that would assist the city’s Americans With Disabilities Act coordinator. Commissioners expressed that they wanted the accessibility to be more formal than the new Multi-Use Path Planning Committee. Agler said the current ordinance was “a little too casual.” Zimmerman agreed to draft the ordinance again.
• Looked at insurance options for city employees for the 2009 calendar year. City Personnel Specialist Dorothy Shipman presented premium cost choices from American Sterling, the city’s current self-funded insurance provider, and Blue Cross Blue Shield, for the year 2008. Cost proposals for 2009 will be based on claims made during ’08 on the city’s current plan. The city is examining its health insurance plan because of a high number of claims during the past two years.
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Posted by dhcc66 (anonymous) on February 28, 2008 at 2:06 p.m. (Suggest removal)
ok, the question is....why would the comission oppose a k9 unit? as far as i know or have heard, it hasn't cost the county or KHP a crazy amount of money and they help protect the officers and citizens.
the other thing that maybe the chief should argue is that it makes this department more marketable to outside candidates for officers. if i remember correctly, most other cities emporia's size have k9 officers and there are a lot of smaller places that have made them work from what i can read.
congratulations to the new chief for having guts to go out there and get this started. please comissioners...don't balk at the chance to make emporia an even safer place to live
Posted by toninj (anonymous) on February 28, 2008 at 2:08 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Truth be told: Emporia Police Dept has a history of not working well with other agencies and this is probably just another example. They want their own K-9 unit so they don't have to work together with the KHP or the SO. Maybe funding should have been raised to send current EPD personnel to training on the advantages of collaborating with other agencies rather then working against them! City money could have been spent better then this.
Posted by letsride (anonymous) on February 28, 2008 at 3:40 p.m. (Suggest removal)
it is so very true that Emporia P D does not work well or at all with other agencies in or out of Lyon County. Just ask any of us that work with other depts & have the displeasure of trying to work hand in hand with Emporia for various cases or calls. Maybe the new chief should try to ease tensions with other agencies. If he is true to his words about scheduling with the dog, that is a good start. Chief just think of the information that your agency is missing becasue of it's better then God attitude towards other Depts.--In & out of the county. Good Luck
Posted by Cliffy (anonymous) on February 28, 2008 at 8:52 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Why wouldn't Emporia PD want their own dog. If they use another department's dog they have to share any drug money or property seized. Having a drug/attack dog is just another tool to fight crime. I say thanks to the officer(s) from within the department who came forward to the chief with this idea. It's an idea that has been supported by the officers for ten years and has been shot down by upper management every time. Can you imagine finding a half million dollars in cash with drugs. That kind of chump change comes through Emporia almost every day. It would sure go a long way to feed and train a dog. And they can also use the dog to help track a lost child, find a creep that fled from the officers, crowd control, and many more uses right here in Emporia. Why wouldn't we want that? We can afford thousands of dollars to study things and then comes something that just makes good common sense and all of a sudden Bobby A says we can't afford it? WTH?
Posted by justthefacts (anonymous) on February 28, 2008 at 9:56 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Not working together, just today, sheriff's deputies and city police were around the schools in case something happened. City, county and state law people are training together and they meet up all the time. The sheriff's K9 sheriff deputy helped the pd get their program started. Sounds like they work together to me.
Posted by dhcc66 (anonymous) on February 28, 2008 at 10:07 p.m. (Suggest removal)
wow...this coming from a bunch of people who are obviously from other law enforcement agencies. i've heard that things have not been wonderful with other agencies and the police department, but remember, it takes two. i would encourage the whiners on this fourum who are obviously from the other departments to step up like professionals and talk to the chief themselves. whining will get law enforcement nowhere
Posted by toninj (anonymous) on February 28, 2008 at 11:30 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I don't think anybody here is "whining" just stating the obvious from past actions of the EPD. Maybe under the new Chief things will change and he will work with the other agencies that have made continuous efforts to collaborate just to be ignored. Hopefully this Chief can change attitude in the department or "clean house". Maybe the city should look at pay raises for the PD to hire in better attitudes rather then putting money towards a K-9 unit when 2 others are available.
Posted by dhcc66 (anonymous) on February 29, 2008 at 9:38 a.m. (Suggest removal)
toni, it sounds like you have an axe to grind with somebody at the police department? hopefully YOU will be able to see past the former administration's shortcomings and work with the new chief. remember, the officers can only do what they are allowed, correct?
second, why in your opinion, are the sheriff's office and khp the only ones allowed to have a k-9 unit? (or at least that is what it seems that you think) ask the deputy and the trooper who helped to get the police department's program running what they think about having another dog around. if they helped get it started, it must not be a bad thing in their eyes..right??
also, it seems that the chief wants something different with the department's K-9. not to focus on highway interdiction and to focus more on finding or tracking suspects and officer safety/protection. i know that khp and the deputy's dog already do those as well, but if they are at the end of their shift, out of town on training, or otherwise busy, is it not good to have a k-9 available?
on the other topic of agency cooperation.....
from what i understand the first thing Chief Smith did when he came to town was to go meet with all of the local law enforcement admins like the sheriff and some of the other agency heads. sounds like he's reaching out to make sure they know he's different. your attitude, if it doesn't change, will just infect the rest and continue the problems, if there were any. kudos to chief smith for what he has done so far. lets all give him a chance and see what comes of the rest of his time in emporia
Posted by ozland (anonymous) on February 29, 2008 at 12:04 p.m. (Suggest removal)
If Jeff Longbine can get the City to take his bid on vehicles, which to some of us-SMELLS OF Inappropriateness-then that should tell of you that he and the rest of our intellectual challenged leadership-will not make a move toward progress and protection of Emporians, unless they hear-cha ching in their heavy pockets.
Posted by dhcc66 (anonymous) on February 29, 2008 at 1:47 p.m. (Suggest removal)
to oz and all the others....might also look at longbine and agler's reaction to the whole thing. wonder where the k-9 car will come from....bet it's already gotten and not from them??? maybe that is part of the problem they are seeing with the project?
didn't see any bad reaction from the other comissioners who don't have financial interest in the whole process..now did we? if the chief said there is no budget problem with the unit...give him the chance to prove it. khp and sheriff don't have budget probs with their k-9s...do they?
Posted by slipandslide (anonymous) on February 29, 2008 at 4:50 p.m. (Suggest removal)
if a dog can be trained to pick up the scent of gun powder, then the next time the school needs security because of a threat, then a dog would be helpful
Posted by justaflushaway (anonymous) on March 5, 2008 at 5:16 p.m. (Suggest removal)
WAIT A MINUTE !!!!!!!!!!!! this smells
This is what Smith said as for how it would be funded.....
"The start-up costs to acquire the dog and associated equipment is a little more than $15,000, which Smith said has already been raised in cash and commitments from Emporia residents and businesses"
This is one of the items that the county commission will approve tomorrow morning....
J. Approve the use of up to $15,000 for cost of a vehicle and for a K-9 unit for the Emporia Police Department from Fund 86
WHY is the county funding the cost of the K-9 dog and handler when Smith said the cash has ALREADY BEEN RAISED???
Smith maybe you need to explain this, as I for one don't understand why the county tax payers are funding YOUR dog and handler, and don't tell me that it will also be used in the county, save that crap for someone who is new to emporia.
Oh Smith , you don't need a dog, the county has one, the city is broke and if you want to check buildings, get out of your car and do it.
It seems to me that the city commission decided NOT to research this very well, JUST go ahead and approve it, normal city government at its best....
Posted by midnight_rider (anonymous) on March 5, 2008 at 8:47 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Hey Flush - How interesting that Smith trys to tell everyone that the dog is to be funded by local private donations, when it is the county that he wants to foot the bill. If smith is not willing to be truthful about who is funding the dog, makes you wonder what else he is not truthful about.
Posted by justaflushaway (anonymous) on March 5, 2008 at 9:03 p.m. (Suggest removal)
midnight, thanks for the comment, I do wish I had known about this sooner, SOMEONE needs to check this tommorrow at the city and county, if smith already has 15 grand, and the county is going to give him 15 grand , what the hell did HE do with the 15 grand that was commited and the cash that was given?.
And zimmerman thinks it was a good thing and wont be a budget problem, well we know why now!!!! zimmerman, maybe you could comment on this ? this smells like dog crap and the residents of emporia and the county have once again stepped in it
Posted by emporian (anonymous) on March 5, 2008 at 9:16 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I think fund 86 is drug forfiture (sp). I could be wrong though.
Posted by justthefacts (anonymous) on March 5, 2008 at 9:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Yes that is a forfeiture account and last time I checked, Emporia is part of Lyon County. I actually went out and checked around and what I understand was the cheif said that the county attorney was paying for the car and that the 15k was for the other expenses of buying the dog and stuff like that. Gee let us see. First the different agencies don't get aloong according to some of you and then when the do work together, you try to beet them up. You may want to get your facts strait before you go around smeering people
Posted by dhcc66 (anonymous) on March 6, 2008 at 1:22 p.m. (Suggest removal)
umm, did anybody bother to tell flushed (very appropriate name) and midnight that all city funding records are public? talk about lazy, why don't you do your own research like the rest of us have? or is it easier to lean back in your computer desk chair and smear?
give me a break, usually the ones who don't want more law enforcement or better and more effective law enforcement are the ones who have the most to fear from it....or am i just imagining things?
Posted by toninj (anonymous) on March 6, 2008 at 6:01 p.m. (Suggest removal)
It shouldn't surprise anyone that the county attorney is helping with this. You can find him out having drinks with PD Assistant Chief Williams on a regular basis at Bruff's, probably where this little deal got worked out! This does not exactly meet standards of agency collaboration, at least not for me. AC Williams is at the top of the list at being unwilling to work with other agencies.
Commissioners really need to work with Smith and Zimmerman at how to clean up the department before putting more money into it. I feel bad for those two, they hired into a mess!
Posted by Cherry_Bomb (anonymous) on March 6, 2008 at 6:41 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Here are links for the city and county agenda meetings.
City Commisin Meetings and Agendas
http://emporia-kansas.gov/minutes.nsf/C9...
Lyon County Commisions Meetings
http://www.lyoncounty.org/CountyCommissi...
Posted by justaflushaway (anonymous) on March 6, 2008 at 7:03 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Thanks Cherry for the links. Just having moved here NOT that long ago from Chicago, I have NOT learned every thing that some OTHERS who post on this fine site. Yes, I did read the article about 15 thousand, the K-9 dog, and the money already available from private agencies. And last night I saw the county commission agenda, yes it was after the city offices closed, and the county commission meeting began at 8 AM this morning, SO I guess I am a dumb ass for NOT being as smart as some, BUT I will not judge others. BUT I will continue to ask questions about city and county government, and will READ as much as I can about Kansas and Emporia, hell who knows, I may run for a city office, not just sit and imagine things.
Posted by dhcc66 (anonymous) on March 7, 2008 at 9:48 a.m. (Suggest removal)
oh thank goodness...flush will save emporia.
flush, if you would bother to remember what you wrote above, you are horribly judgemental of others, and of the city and county governments. you have no idea of the history here and you need to sit this one out and figure out what is real and what it just thrown out in here for all to read.
unfortunately it is the american way to criticize, but in some ways that is good.
as far as the k9, it's been a long time coming. friends of mine on other agencies have asked for emporia to have a dog for years and the commission and the former chiefs had always balked at it saying "we have the county dogs". the problem was and still is until the new dog it out and trained, that the county k9 is not always available, sometimes because of being worked a full day and sometimes because they are out of the city or county on training. the county k-9 handler and khp k9 handlers are great and it's no fault of theirs that they are not always available. hopefully we won't become so short sighted that we would say "hey, the county has a street department, why do we need one?"
Posted by justaflushaway (anonymous) on March 7, 2008 at 11:32 a.m. (Suggest removal)
yep your right , don't have any idea, but, seems like you think that no one should learn either, thank you for showing your true colors, law enforcement here should be proud of you and Emporia should be glad to have you overseeing the city with a strong hand, I will make sure that I will never do anything to cause you to cane me.
""unfortunately it is the american way to criticize, but in some ways that is good""" your words,,.dickheadcitycop66 (very appropriate name)
you must have SMS .
Posted by dhcc66 (anonymous) on March 7, 2008 at 12:20 p.m. (Suggest removal)
flush. who said anything about me being a city cop? i happen to be a blue collar worker in manufacturing. i happen to have a few friends who are in law enforcement.
and please keep it clean. slinging profane names around here will only get you kicked off
Posted by dick (anonymous) on March 9, 2008 at 8:27 a.m. (Suggest removal)
This is another one of those incidents that is proof that the county and city would be better off to have their law enforcements combined and under one roof and command. If one thinks this won't work then check around the western part of Kansas just to find out that it does.
Posted by tunit (anonymous) on March 9, 2008 at 10:11 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Dick, the only consolidated law enforcement in the state is Riley County. Western Kansas may have only a sheriff in the county, but they are not consolidated. The towns in their county are too small to have a police department, so the sheriff takes care of them.
Posted by dhcc66 (anonymous) on March 10, 2008 at 9:09 a.m. (Suggest removal)
if anybody bothered to read the articles about consolidation in the gazette in the last year or so, most of the studies show it would be a bad thing. interviews with the riley county chief made it sound like the startup costs took almost 20 years to erase.
also, does anybody really want the city and county fighting over who patrols where, who gets control over law enforcement, who is going to fund what, what colors are the uniforms/cars, and on, and on, and on, and on....sounds like quicksand to me.
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