Sheriff

Services - K9 Unit

Apprehension Dog demonstration
Apprehension dogs aid their handlers by assisting in arresting known dangerous criminals who will or may offer physical resistance to the arresting deputies or officers, or who may attempt to flee or escape custody as is displayed by this demonstration.

The Sherburne County Sheriff’s Office currently has four canines assigned to three deputies and one correctional officer. Two of the canines, Hari and Ecco, currently are primarily narcotic detection dogs, which are able to find numerous types of illegal drugs. Ecco will be receiving further training in March of 2010 to become a dual purpose canine. This means he will be a detector dog as well as a criminal apprehension dog. The other dog on patrol, Ares, is already certified as a dual purpose canine.

Correctional Officer Stang with K-9 partner Hari.
Correctional Officer Stang with K-9 partner Hari.

The last dog in our program is Phoenix, who is certified in Explosive Detection, and works primarily in and around the courthouse along with assisting with searching various areas of the grounds of the Government Center. In 2009, Phoenix was involved in ten demonstrations for the public, six calls for suspicious items at the Government Center, and also assisted other departments such as Bloomington and Princeton Police Departments and the Mille Lacs County Sheriff’s Office for events in their area.

Deputy Sturm with his K-9 partner Ecco.
Deputy Sturm with his K-9 partner Ecco.

The use of canines is a legitimate and valuable tool in law enforcement. Their greatest values are in the deterring effect of their presence and their superb sense of smell.

Historically, the various purposes of canine units included:

  • To provide protection for the deputy assigned as the handler or to provide protection to other officers or the public.
  • To assist in arresting known dangerous criminals who will or may offer physical resistance to the arresting deputies or officers, or who may attempt to flee or escape custody.
  • To assist in search and apprehension work for intruders, prowlers, escapees, burglars, or individuals who have fled the scene of traffic stops, terminated pursuits, or abandoned vehicles where the occupants are being sought by law enforcement authorities.
  • To aid in the search for lost or missing persons.
    • Deputy White and K-9 partner Ares.
    Deputy White and K-9 partner Ares.
  • To assist in restoring or maintaining order at riots, major disturbances, crime scenes, accident scenes or where large crowds of people pose a potential control problem.
Sgt. Boler with his K-9 partner Phoenix.
Sgt. Boler with his K-9 partner Phoenix.