Moustache Unplugged #31

hehehe...he left the computer on so I'll work on my letter....

Dearest Nyx,

Remember me?  I embraced your tragic story of slowly cooking to death in the back of a police car while ranting in Moustache Unplugged #19 and have kept quiet for awhile. But, here of late, additional tragedies are sucker-punching me and my whiskers are buzzing in anger.  So, it's time to let 'em rip.





K9 Nyx

July 9, 2014  Wyoming.   Nyx, loyal partner and man's best friend, you were at work at the Mills PD and was left in your patrol car by your handler while he went into the station.  Rules dictate that you could have accompanied him, but for whatever reason, you were left behind.  Roughly 6 hours later, behold, he remembered you and came out to discover your lifeless body had suffered a horrible death. Unreal! Then, he was charged with animal cruelty and had the nerve to plead not guilty.  What?  Like it was someone else's fault?  Pathetic! Just prior to going to trial, he plead guilty to a SWEET plea agreement. The punishment?  The judge sentenced him to 6 months in jail, but suspended the time in trade for 6 months of unsupervised probation.  During probation, your handler was ordered to pay $3,000 to the town for restitution and complete 100 hours of community service. Once community service is completed, his restitution will be reduced to $2,200.  Wait a minute!  Doesn't that equate to getting paid while doing community service?  Let's see. In exchange for 100 hours, his restitution bill will be reduced by $800.  According to my simple math, that means he is EARNING  $8/hr to do community service? Pretty good since minimum wage in Wyoming is $7.25/hr.  Am I the only one confused here? I thought community service was part of the punishment and this clown got paid to do it like it was a side job? C'mon Judge!  But, dear Nyx, at least your handler had to face his actions that led to your death and you will be memorialized out in front of the PD via a bronze statue.  As you continue to read, that may soothe some of the pain... And, if you care, he kept his job at the PD....


May 5, 2015  Florida.  Hector and Jimmy.  First and foremost, I apologize for not including pictures of you, but every photograph has your supposed caretaker at your side. How ironic! (Is that possibly a clue that the assignment was all about him and you guys were token sidekicks?)   Refusing to give him any face time, I will comment that Hector, you're a stately Belgian Malinois and Jimmy, you got great bloodhound looks.  Your story is a double dose of heart break as your Hialeah PD handler drives you home after a midnight shift of work and somehow forgets you in the car.  Around 7 pm, yes, that's 7 in the evening, he finally decided to check on you guys, the very creatures on this planet who worship the ground he walks on. You both suffered to death roasting in Florida's sunshine while trapped inside the patrol car parked in his driveway.  Unbelievable! I sit flabbergasted on how someone could forget both of you in a car.  Your last hours on earth were unimaginably miserable, but in that final suffering, you at least had each other. Sorry, no word yet on whether or not he will be charged for your deaths.

K9 Mason

June 18, 2015 Alabama.  K9 Mason, I simply look at your birthday picture and it automatically elicits a smile.  Your title at the Gulf Shore Police Department was a "Community Engagement Officer." No doubt your goofy and happy personality infected all around you and I am confident that you excelled at your job.  Apparently, you didn't matter near enough to your handler when he went into a building for a hurricane preparation conference and forgot all about you until he rushed out to see you clinging to life while cooking alive in the car.  You later died and, remarkably, the local prosecutor's office will not seek charges on your handler . Since you weren't an "enforcement K9", they say your car did not have specialized equipment such as a door that automatically pops open when it gets too hot inside.  BFD!  This is not about the damned car, it's about the dipshit who provided negligent care!  Shame, shame.  (Reports state the handler faces "sanctions" from the PD and the city...I can only imagine the severity of such "sanctions.")

K9 Nitro

June 30, 2015  California.  K9 Nitro, while on-duty, your Stockton PD handler left you inside the patrol car in 100+ degree heat while he assisted as another K9 searched for a wanted man. Upon his return, you were in grave condition from the heat, rushed to a vet clinic and later died.  Articles point to a faulty air conditioner. I wonder how much time was wasted by your handler on the call?  No doubt a lot of uniforms were running around the area where the other K9 successfully found the wanted male.  Afterwards, I'm guessing there was a lull in the action with high-fives and celebratory conversations where those precious minutes may have made the difference.  Your incident somewhat stands alone from the others as you were in the line of duty with a whole different set of circumstances. Without having a lot more information, I will not point the finger at your handler, yet, and am saddened with your passing.

K9 Baston

July 10, 2015 Georgia.  (For delicate eyes and personalities, hereby be warned that the 'stache is partially cracking open his potty mouth on this one!)  While on his way home, you were riding with your Savannah State University handler as he stopped to grab some food for his family. Upon arriving home, he took the food into the house where he ate and fell asleep.  Three to four hours later, he awoke and looked for you, Baston, and realized you had been left behind in the car in 95-97 degree heat with the SUV's engine off and windows rolled up. During the investigation, your handler and his wife made statements about how he brought food in for them and their 2 children, a 2 year old and a 3 week old.  He fell asleep afterwards because, well, the poor little fella was tired....  Apparently, the kids are keeping them up day and night and he was exhausted.  BOO FUCKING HOO!  Be careful when making such a statement as it sounds like having 2 kids is morphing this officer into a complete dumb ass. I wonder if you, Baston, had been a bucket of ice cream or a gallon of milk, would your handler have rushed back out to the car after carrying in the groceries to prevent the food from spoiling?  Criminal charges on his negligence are unknown as are any spankings from the University or the PD.

K9 Zane

July 16, 2015  Georgia.  K9 Zane, you are yet another statistic where I need to watch my potty mouth while recapping your story.  As your Conyers PD handler went home ill at the end of his overnight shift, he somehow forgot to take you out of the car.  He went into his home and 7 hours later, it is stated that he "was distraught" after returning to the car to report back to work and found your lifeless body. Are you kidding me?  Did he not notice you weren't in the house or wherever he typically kept you during the day?  What about feeding you?  Was that another oversight? Was he so sick that he was delirious when arriving home and due to the illness, he completely forgot about you?  Well, he's now a living miracle since he magically healed up in 7 hours to return to work. Just exactly how, after working with you for 3 years, does a person forget to bring you out of the car?  Criminal charges are unknown, but he is facing internal disciplinary charges. Whatever that means...

K9 Zeke

July 23, 2015  Oklahoma.  Then there's K9 Zeke, an officer at Muldrow PD for over four years. While at work, your handler went inside a building for over an hour with the air conditioner reportedly running in the vehicle.  Apparently, he was on the telephone for 1 hour and 15 minutes regarding a domestic battery report.  What?  Typically only long-lost friends talk that long over a telephone!  I'd love to see the associated police report and evaluate if the investigation reflects such an in-depth telephone interview.  Anyhow, he reportedly returned to the 2014 Tahoe that malfunctioned and was only blowing hot air and you had perished. Here's the kicker. The Sheriff''s Chief Deputy is quoted about how it was known that the Tahoes in the fleet were having air conditioner problems and that "it could have happened to any K9 Officer."  Bullshit!  Once again, let's blame a machine rather than the handler.  And to think the mechanical failure that killed you (if indeed that is a fact rather than a scapegoat) was not a secret!

In slightly over a calender year, I struggle to accept these eight deaths and I stew about them. Fingers point this way and that way to deflect blame and I point them right back to the handlers.  If you are a true and passionate handler, it's ALL about your K9.  That very animal is YOUR fucking job. I can hardly stomach thinking about how you, the handler, strut around friends, family, co-workers and other handlers preening yourself like a peacock. I bet you freely offer, without questions, how great you are and that you're on SWAT...the firearms staff... a training officer... won some bullshit award... are sought out as an expert decoy... testified as an expert witness...been in pictures in K9 magazines... blah blah blah.  You may even question how someone as great as you isn't asked for autographs?  I seethe at the arrogance and absurdity of you using the K9 assignment as an ego boost.  Aside from Nitro, who's death I am still on the fence about, all the above K9s were a secondary arrogant extension of the handlers, otherwise no K9 would have been forgotten in the back of a patrol car! Do accidents happen? Absolutely. But, a scrambled list priorities led to these senseless deaths! Do I know everything about these incidents? Nope, I only read what is reported and there is no question the media screws things up, but there is an obvious common theme here: K9s suffering tortuous deaths by cooking in cars.  Pretty hard to screw up that fact. Even if the cars had all the bells and whistles to prevent roasting the K9s, a dutiful handler would not rely his dog's life on a piece of machinery that can fail!

So, Nyx, Hector, Jimmy, Mason, Nitro, Baston, Zane and Zeke, I HONOR AND SALUTE YOU. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE.  RIP! 

I really wonder how many others have gone unreported and I also wonder how much influence the badge has on whether or not criminal charges are pursued against the handler?  For the sake of argument and to provide the handlers an excuse, let's go ahead and classify these deaths as "accidents".  Well, I believe most car crashes are also classified as accidents, too.  But, the person who is determined to be the proximate cause of the accident is cited and typcially has to answer for their actions in a courtroom.  Why wouldn't each of these "accidents" likewise be presented in front of a judge as well?  Under similar circumstances, a civilian would have a darn tough time not getting charged and there should be no double standard!

I'm done, for now, thanks for listening.