Framingham Police Department: New police dog


Commentary:

At least, this dog will not park himself at Dunkin Donuts every day. He might be used once a week to sniff out drugs and the rest of the time, he will sniff crotches or be playing with other dogs. Ahh! The life of a police dog is good. Free food, housing, health insurance at the expense of the taxpayers. Officer Langmeyer gets a free dog with all the bennies.

The problem with highly trained police dogs is that they are trained to react on some cue, such as a word, to perhaps bark, thus possibly indicating drugs so that the police officer can circumvent probable cause on a cue given to a dog. This cue can be a change of tone of the officers voice.

K-9 units are implemented solely to circumvent the fourth Amendment by providing false alerts so ill-defined that no one can dispute them. The dogs are being trained to alert their handlers by cues, instead of by picking up a drug's scent by sniffing. When a dog gives a false alert, this results in illegal searches and seizures, including money and property,

Cops just enjoy exercising power and being annoying, just like a typical bully enjoys beating smaller kids.

The Lowell Police Academy has a 22 week training program for new officers. This dog will have 26 weeks of training.

Framingham welcomes police dog Jef to the force February 27, 2012
Norman Miller 508-626-3823 Metrowest Daily News
FRAMINGHAM - The Police Department recently welcomed its newest, and youngest, officer to the force, Jef.

Jef is a 14-month-old German shepherd who has teamed with Officer Christopher Langmeyer to form the department's first officer and dog partnership since 2005.

"It's a resource that is really needed," Police Chief Steven Carl said. "We're always calling for outside dogs, but sometimes they're an hour (or more) away from town, and sometimes you really need them right away. The dog provides a service to the town."

Framingham used to have two police dogs. But one retired due to a medical condition and the second was handled by then-Officer Scott Brown. When Brown was promoted to sergeant in 2005, the dog got sent to another police department.

Before Jef arrived, Framingham would contact Ashland Police - in the hopes that its dog, Dax, was available - or the Massachusetts State Police.

The primary obstacle to getting a new police dog since 2005 was funding. It costs about $50,000 to get the dog, pay for its training and equipment costs and retrofit a cruiser to accommodate it.

"We had to get creative," to get the money, the chief said.

To pay for the dog, the department got a $17,000 federal grant. It also got a $10,000 donation from the Framingham Co-operative Bank Foundation, $5,000 from Dr. Edward and Reasa Cohen of Framingham and $3,000 each from the South Middlesex Opportunity Council and Wayside Youth & Family Support Network.

The rest of the money came from drug money the department had seized, Carl said.

The dog's training, at an academy in West Boylston, lasted about 16 weeks, Langmeyer said.

Langmeyer, a 13-year veteran of the Framingham Police Department, said he and Jef trained on tracking people, searching for articles (such as clothing and other items) and other tracking methods. Later this year, they will attend another two-month academy for narcotics searches.

"He's done well," Langmeyer said. "He's just like a new police officer, and he has that rookie mentality. He's anxious and he wants to do it."

Jef was born on Christmas Day in 2010, and weighs about 70 pounds, Langmeyer said. A healthy police dog can be active and on duty for about eight to 10 years.

Jef is always with Langmeyer. They patrol together, and Jef lives at Langmeyer's home.

"The dog is a tool, just as much as being a pet," he said. "It's something you have to be aware of. You can't let it roam free like you would do with another dog, but he has incorporated with my family."

Having a dog that's almost instantly available can be important in many instances, said Sgt. Lester Baker, a patrol supervisor.

"Just as important as finding a bad guy, it's good to find a missing child or someone with autism," Baker said. "It's a great tool."

Carl said the department would like to add a second police dog.

"I'm excited about it," he said. "I watched the dog in a couple of training scenarios, and it was good."

Meanwhile, this may be another Framingham police dog in its early training.

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