POST Law Enforcement K-9 Guidelines
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K-9 Teams Detection Training Services C20K0001 Attachment - 2 POST Law Enforcement K-9 Guidelines CALIFORNIA COMMISSION ON PEACE OFFICER STANDARDS AND TRAINING POST Law Enforcement K-9 Guidelines Produced by POST Training Program Services Bureau Foreword by Robert A. Stresak POST Executive Director POST Law Enforcement K-9 Guidelines ©2014 by California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training Published January 2014 All rights reserved. This publication may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical or by any information retrieval system now known or hereafter invented, without prior written permission of the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, with the following exception: California law enforcement agencies in the POST peace officer program and POST-certified training presenters are hereby given permission by POST to reproduce any or all of the contents of this manual for their internal use. All other individuals, private businesses and corporations, public and private agencies and colleges, professional associations, and non-POST law enforcement agencies in state or out-of-state may print or download this information for their personal use only. Infringement of the copyright protection law and the provisions expressed here and on the POST website under Copyright/Trademark Protection will be pursued in a court of law. Questions about copyright protection of this publication and exceptions may be directed to Publications Manager. All photos used with permission. Special thanks to Chief David M. Brown, Hemet Police Department. POST2014TPS-0414 POST Mission Statement The mission of the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training is to continually enhance the professionalism of California law enforcement in serving its communities. LAW ENFORCEMENT CANINE GUIDELINES v POST Commissioners Chair Vice Chair Peter Kurylowicz Jr Laurie Smith Deputy Sheriff, Riverside County Sheriff, Santa Clara County Lai Lai Bui Ronald Lowenberg Detective, Sacramento Police Department Dean, Criminal Justice Training Center Robert Cooke Jim McDonnell California Narcotic Officers' Association Chief, Long Beach Police Department Robert T. Doyle Sylvia Moir Sheriff, Marin County Chief, El Cerrito Police Department Joyce Dudley Jethroe Moore Santa Barbara District Attorney Public Member Sandra Hutchens Michael Sobek Sheriff - Coroner, Orange County Sergeant, San Leandro Police Department Laren Leichliter Deputy, San Bernadino County Kamala D. Harris Robert A. Stresak Attorney General, Ex Officio Member POST Executive Director LAW ENFORCEMENT CANINE GUIDELINES vii Acknowledgements POST appreciates the efforts of the 2011-2013 subject matter expert group who assisted in the development of this voluntary program. Officer Walter Aldred Sergeant Romeo Ingreso Mr. Ronnie Rackley San Leandro Police Department Los Angeles Sheriff’s Office Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, CAPTO Officer Glen Anderson Chief Dave Keetle Rialto Police Department Pomona Police Department, CPCA Lieutenant Robert Rios Los Angeles World Airports Police Lieutenant Gary Aulis Sergeant Aaron Kelliher Fontana Police Department Chino Police Department Lieutenant John Savage Placer County Sheriff’s Office Officer John Azevedo Officer Roger Kinney Sacramento Police Department, PORAC West Sacramento Police Department Assistant Executive Director Communications Supervisor Stephanie Scofield Dr. Melissa Bain POST Veterinary Medicine, UC Davis, Delia Kraft Orange County Sheriff’s Department, Lieutenant Barbara Upham PSDAC Lieutenant Scott Blum California Highway Patrol Modesto Police Department, CNCA Sergeant John Kunkle Lieutenant Dan Seaman Placerville Police Department Mr. Steven Brewer California Highway Patrol Law Dogs Ms. Lizelda Lopez Deputy Brian Slominski Ogilvy Public Relations, Lieutenant Ron Cloward Ventura County Sheriff’s Office Top Dog Police K-9 Training and Public Member Consulting, WSPCA Sergeant Jay Miller Officer Shirley Sumner Irvine Police Department Deputy Tom Fara Santa Ana Police Department Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department Sergeant Don Mitchell Officer Gregg Tawney Elk Grove Police Department Lieutenant Michael Frawley Ontario Police Department San Diego State University Police Captain Perry Phipps Officer Diane Ward Department Visalia Police Department Oakland Police Department Bureau Chief Bryon Gustafson Sheriff Mike Poindexter Officer Ernest Wolosewicz POST Modoc County Sheriff’s Office, CSSA Long Beach Police Department Mr. David Inglis Attorney Bruce Praet Director Jared Zwickey Inglis Police Dog Academy, CPOA Ferguson, Praet & Sherman San Joaquin Delta College LAW ENFORCEMENT CANINE GUIDELINES ix Foreword In 1991, a group of K-9 Officers, Law Enforcement Managers, and K-9 Trainers from throughout the state met to discuss the need for K-9 Team Standards in California. The group believed that local liability would be reduced if statewide K-9 Team Standards were available. They further believed that these standards, to be acceptable and have impact, should be supported by the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST). In February 1992, POST brought this committee and other interested experts together, and they agreed to develop guidelines in the area of Obedience, Search, Apprehension, Handler Protection, Handler Selection, and Evaluation. After initial development work and following several reviews which resulted in consensus, the proposed guidelines were submitted to and approved by the POST Commission in July 1992. Following Commission action, POST brought the subject matter experts together again and developed suggested scenarios to test the recommended minimum K-9 Team Standards contained within the approved guidelines. POST developed a one-day Evaluator’s Course and accompanying evaluation forms to train officers evaluating K-9 Teams. This update, developed between November 2011 and October 2013, aims to refine and streamline the guidelines which were in use for more than a decade. POST recognized that agencies utilize K-9 teams in various capacities and with differing expectations. Additionally, many more specialized K-9 team functions have developed in the two decades since POST first created the guidelines. As a result, POST determined it would not attempt to comprehensively standardize all functions. Instead, these guidelines recommend minimum training and evaluation benchmarks for K-9 Patrol and Detection functions. They are for the voluntary use of law enforcement agencies and are sufficiently general to accommodate differing agencies’ policies regarding operational deployment of K-9 teams. Questions regarding the POST Law Enforcement K-9 Guidelines should be directed to the Training Program Services Bureau at 916 227-4885. Questions regarding certification of K-9 training courses should be directed to the Training Delivery and Compliance Bureau at 916 227-4863. Robert A. Stresak POST Executive Director LAW ENFORCEMENT CANINE GUIDELINES xi Introduction These guidelines are designed to assist agencies with minimum training and performance standards for patrol and detection K-9 teams. Patrol K-9 teams should meet minimum standards with regard to obedience, search, apprehension, and handler protection. Detection K-9 teams should meet minimum standards with regard to detections of the odor(s) the K-9 is trained to detect. This categorization (patrol and detection) is intentionally basic. POST recognizes that there are many specializations among law enforcement canines. Specializations include explosives detection, cadaver detection, search and rescue, SWAT, and airport operations, among others. There are many resources and industry standards that may be relevant and useful to agencies engaged in these or other K-9 specialties. Many are identified in Appendix 3 – Resources. LAW ENFORCEMENT CANINE GUIDELINES xiii Contents POST Mission Statement ....................................................................................................................v POST Commissioners ....................................................................................................................... vii Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... ix Foreword ......................................................................................................................................... xi Introduction .................................................................................................................................. xiii Training Guidelines ...........................................................................................................................1 Patrol Guidelines ......................................................................................................................1 Detection Guidelines ................................................................................................................2 Scenarios for K-9 Team Evaluation .....................................................................................................3 K-9 Team Evaluation ..........................................................................................................................7 K-9 Team Evaluator’s Course (8 hours) ................................................................................................9 Appendix 1 Glossary .....................................................................................................................13