Valley officers learn how to deal with dogs

Sept. 15--Debbie Shurte lives in Meridian's Haven Cove, across the street from where a family dog was shot and killed by an off-duty Ada County sheriff's deputy in 2010.

Shurte didn't see the shooting but she knew the dog -- a 7-year-old Queensland heeler named Cowboy -- and the incident left a lasting impression on her. Meridian</location> police investigated the incident and found no wrong-doing on the part of Timothy Wade, who told investigators the loose dog had its teeth bared and was moving aggressively toward him in the street.

"That dog was not aggressive. I will go to my grave defending that dog," said Shurte, a former veterinary technician and groomer who now has a business that sharpens clipper blades and scissors.

Shurte began closely following cases of police officers shooting dogs, including the one in Filer earlier this year. Patrol Officer Tarek Hassani shot and killed a 7-year-old black Lab named Hooch, and the whole encounter was captured on his patrol car dashboard camera.

Filer police and the Idaho Counties Risk Management Program asked Nampa police to investigate the controversial shooting.

Hassani was determined to have been justified in shooting the dog because he feared for his safety. But Nampa's report on the incident was also very critical, saying "the officer had prior information that the dogs might be aggressive and his failure to develop or consider any realistic non-lethal plan for dealing with the dogs was not reasonable."

Shurte didn't like the cop-bashing that was going on after the Filer incident, and she believed that more officer training would reduce the number of shootings. She joined like-minded individuals in the Facebook group Idahoans for Non-lethal Canine Encounter Training, which was up to 89 members on Friday.

Shurte and Edith Williams -- who created the group -- have spent a lot of their free time in recent weeks reaching out to Idaho law enforcement agencies, urging them to consider sending officers to an eight-hour canine encounter training at the Ada County Sheriff's Office on Oct. 30.

"The group page has an open invite to law enforcement," said Williams, who works as a receptionist in Boise and has two dogs, both Argentine mastiff-heeler mixes. "We want to bring both sides together, figure this out together. What can we do to protect officers, citizens and dogs?"

The training advocates have been putting out calls and emails with a sense of urgency, in part because the training was originally scheduled for July but was canceled due to low enrollment. Also, a July 9 shooting in Coeur d'Alene was found to have been in violation of department policy, the chief announced this month.

Officer Dave Kelley shot and killed a 2-year-old Labrador retriever named Arfee, who Kelley said lunged out a van window near his face and throat. The department declined to discuss any potential disciplinary action.

Members of Idahoans for Non-lethal Canine Encounter Training have offered to pay for three law enforcement officers (from any Idaho department) to take the Oct. 30 training -- but so far just one sponsorship has been taken. The offer still stands, Williams said. (Anyone interested can reach them through their Facebook page.)

Contacted by the Statesman Friday, trainer Jim Osorio with Canine Encounters Law Enforcement Training -- a former police officer now based in Arlington, Texas -- said he has received the minimum number of participants (25) to run the course. He said the maximum number depends on the facility, but he's done trainings for groups of up to 85.

A CHANCE FOR HANDS-ON TRAINING

Osorio did a training in Filer after the February shooting incident, which garnered national attention. He offered to also do one in Boise if the Ada County Sheriff's Office would host it.

The Sheriff's Office agreed -- it will be held at the training annex on Barrister Drive -- and the department emailed a flier about the training to law enforcement agencies around the state and also listed it on the schedule for Peace Officer Standards and Training, Idaho's law enforcement training organization, said sheriff's spokesman Patrick Orr.

The fee to participate is $75. The agency that hosts the trainings gets three free seats.

Orr said the course is optional for Ada County sheriff's deputies. One is confirmed to participate and two others are considering it.

The Sheriff's Office requires all patrol deputies to watch a series of five 10-minute videos about handling canine encounters created by the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services. Boise police are also required to watch those training videos.

"No training is bad training. Any training is good," Osorio said. "I have no problem with videos or books, but I think hands-on is a lot better."

ADVICE OFFERED IN NAMPA

The Nampa Police Department required all of its staff, including its 108 sworn officers, to participate in one of two four-hour trainings this week.

The curriculum for the sessions was designed by Nampa animal control officers Melanie Barkalow and Kimberly Mink, who have each done animal control for the city for five years.

Barkalow and Mink work for the police department, but they aren't sworn officers. They don't carry guns. They've each handled 1,500 to 2,000 calls a year, as have two fellow animal control officers.</p>

Mink has never been bitten on the job, and Barkalow said she's received one bite on the leg.

What do they believe are the two best tools for dealing with strange dogs?

Their voices, including the use of baby talk to coax friendlier behavior, and treats. They showed off a large bag of Pup-Peroni treats at the training; they carry treats in their pockets.

They also carry stun guns, batons, pepper spray and catch poles. They showed a video that demonstrated the use of a catch pole in a real-life capture, after a dog had killed another dog.

"It's not easy," Nampa Sgt. Oren McGuire said of his experience trying to capture a dog with a catch pole.

McGuire, a 15-year patrol veteran who recently became a detective, said he's used his voice, commanding presence and pepper spray in encounters with hostile dogs. He's found that some dogs become more compliant just by hearing the sound of the stun gun.

"You take off the end of it that shoots out the probes and clack it. They don't like it," he said.

McGuire said he heard a lot of positive feedback about the Nampa training this week.

"We have some absolutely fantastic animal control officers. The patrol officers love them," McGuire said. "They know what they're doing so well. It's just nice to have that."

Nampa Police Sgt. Joe Ramirez said the trainings this week were videotaped, and will be sent over to the state training academy for approval to be added to its curriculum.

Katy Moeller: 377-6413

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