INSIDE the Lakeland Police Department

Lakeland Police K-9 Team Recognized by City Commission

The Lakeland Police Department's K-9 Unit was recognized by the Lakeland City Commission this morning for winning the recent 4-man team trophy at the USPCA Region One trials late last month.

Mayor Buddy Fletcher and City Manager Doug Thomas joined the entire City Commission in thanking the officers for their exceptional performance at the trials. The dogs received "doggy cookies" as a token of appreciation as well.

From left to right in this photo are Captain Tom Day, Mr. Thomas, Mayor Fletcher, Officer Charlie Dallas (K-9 Dynx), Officer Ted Sealey (K-9 Bodo), Officer Jeff Barrett (K-9 Beno), Officer Rob Manrow (K-9 Bask), and Officer Ryan Back (K-9 Remy).

- Asst Chief Bill LePere

Lakeland Police K-9 Unit Wins Top Team Honors in Region Trials

The Lakeland Police Department's K-9 Unit won top 4-man team honors once again in the USPCA Region One trials held this week in Pensacola. This is the third year in a row the LPD K-9 Unit claimed the top 4-man team award.  The team competed against approximately 50 other teams to win this award.

Officers who comprised the team included Officer Charlie Dallas (K-9 Dynx), Officer Ted Sealey (K-9 Bodo), Officer Jeff Barrett (K-9 Beno), and Officer Rob Manrow (K-9 Bask).

Three officers finished in the top 10 individual standings. Officer Dallas came in 6th,  Officer Sealey was 7th, and Officer Barrett was 9th.

The commitment of our K-9 officers to train and excel in these trials is truly second to known. We congratulate them on their individual and team accomplishments.

- Asst Chief Bill LePere

Lakeland Police K-9 Unit Earns Second Place Team Honors

We are pleased to announce today the LPD K-9 Unit took overall second place "Department Team" honors in the 2007 USPCA National K-9 Trials. Congratulations to the Ramsey County (MN) Sheriff's Office who unseated LPD from the top team position this year.

The USPCA also recognizes the top 20 dogs in the annual competition. A total of 132 dogs participated in this year's trials. LPD had two dogs finish in the top 20 - Officer Ted Sealey with K-9  "Bodo" placed 3rd and Officer Aaron Peterman with K-9 "Charieff" placed 11th.

Of local interest, we congratulate Bartow PD Officer Michelle Smith with K-9 "Vegas" who took the 14th overall position. Congrats also go to former LPD K-9 Officer Leanne Bennett who moved to Georgia a year ago to be closer to family. She returned to Lakeland with K-9 "Keito" for the trials as a member of the team from Lowndes County (GA) Sheriff and took the 7th overall place.

The top dog in this year's trials went to Officer Jeff Ellis and K-9 Tazer from the Mower County (MN) Sheriff's Office. They scored an incredible 691 out of 700 possible points. Tazer is just an incredible dog and a real joy to watch in action.

We extend our congratulations to all the teams who participated in the trials and wish for you a safe return trip home.

- Asst Chief Bill LePere

Lakeland Police K-9 Unit Receives Community Donations

The Lakeland Police Department's K-9 Unit received two donations during last night's public demonstration for the 2007 USPCA National K-9 Trials. These donations were the result of various fundraisers to raise money to purchase new police dogs as we retire our older dogs.

The Lakeland Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association presented Chief Boatner with a check for $12,000 following their year-long community project. Shown below are Chief Boatner, CPAAA President Justin Troller, and project committee members Christina Davis and Susan Herbolsheimer.

Also on hand to present a check were representatives from the Lakeland Association of Realtors who held a fundraiser earlier this month to support the K-9 Unit. LAR representatives donated $9,500 to the Unit to purchase new dogs.

We thank both of these organizations for their generous support of the Lakeland Police Department and our K-9 Unit.

- Asst Chief Bill LePere

The Beauty of K-9 Teams in Action

I took some time over the past couple of days to watch various K-9 teams in action during the 2007 USPCA National K-9 Trials currently underway in Lakeland. And while I have witnessed these teams before, both at public demonstrations and in real life while searching buildings and apprehending criminals, it never ceases to amaze me with just how impressive these teams are.

The dogs are eager to "play" with their master and do what it is they are trained to do to keep us safe. Their enthusiasm and willingness to respond at a moment's notice is unforgettable, as is their willingness to enter extremely dangerous territory to protect their handler. Their sleek builds, incredible speed, and sheer beauty are something special to watch.

The same can be said for the handlers - officers (men and women) who dedicate their total on and off-duty hours to train a steady partner - each willing to make sacrifices for the betterment of the team.

You have a wonderful opportunity to witness some of the best K-9 teams in the country during the public demonstration Thursday evening, October 25th, beginning at 7:00 PM at the USA International Speedway in State Road 33. Various performances, skills demonstrations, and some action-packed skits are on the agenda. In short, you get to see these teams at their finest, showing what they do everyday to keep our communities safe.

And while you are at it, come out a little early and visit various law enforcement displays that will be on hand. It all makes for a great evening of watching "man's best friend" in the role of a Police K-9. Hope to see you there.

- Asst Chief Bill LePere

Updates from USPCA National K-9 Trials

Looking for updates from the 2007 USPCA National K-9 Trials currently underway in Lakeland?

Check our LPD News blog for daily updates from the trials. You can get that information at www.lpdnewsonline.org.

-Asst Chief Bill LePere

National USPCA K-9 Trials Set to Begin on Monday

Drive around town today and you are likely to see hundreds of various police vehicles from around the country as teams arrive in Lakeland for the 2007 National USPCA K-9 Trials. Let's give a warm Lakeland welcome to our visiting K-9 teams and wish them all the best of luck in this year's trials.

The teams are practicing today at the LPD Training Center and completing final preparations for the trials that begin Monday morning.

A complete schedule of events for the entire week is available here for your reference. All events are free and open to the public. You can also view a promotional video of this event.

Interested in when Lakeland's K-9 officers will be competing?

LPD's teams are part of the GROUP ONE listing, and they will compete in the first positions each day beginning at 7:30 AM. The K-9 officers then assume their roles as event hosts for the rest of the day.

Here is a listing of when and where LPD will complete:

Monday - Obedience and Agility at Lake Parker Park Soccer Field Complex

Tuesday - Articles and Boxes at Sun n Fun Campus

Wednesday - Criminal Apprehension at Victory Church Football Field &
    Gunfire at Lake Parker Soccer Field Complex

Thursday - Day off from competition

A public demonstration is set for Thursday evening at 7:00 PM at the International Speedway on SR 33. Everyone is invited to watch the teams give demonstrations on a variety of police K-9 activities - this event is a real treat to watch.

- Lt. Joe Henson

Lakeland Police to Host 2007 USPCA National K-9 Field Trials

The Lakeland Police Department will be hosting the 2007 United States Police Canine Association Field Trials during the week of October 22 - 26, 2007. This event brings K-9 teams from across the country to Lakeland to vie for the prestigious title of "Top Dog." Throughout the event, 150 - 200 K-9 teams will be scored in activities that include: obedience, agility, evidence search, suspect search, and criminal apprehension. All of the activities are open to the public and free of charge.

The events will take place from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. each day, and will be held at the Lake Parker Soccer Complex located at 910 Granada Street and the campus of Sun n Fun on Medulla Road.

On Thursday, October 25, 2007, at 7:00 p.m., a public demonstration will be held at the USA Speedway where the public will get the chance to see a variety of K-9 skills demonstrated and see the 2007 National Champion announced.

For more information regarding this event, please contact Sgt. Ed Cain at (863) 834-3997 or Jack Gillen at (863) 834-6949.

- Sgt. Ed Cain, K-9 Supervisor

Lakeland Police K-9 Unit Receives Donation from Sam's Club

The Lakeland Police Department's K-9 unit received a $2,500 grant donation from the new Sam's Club in Lakeland earlier this week as part of their corporate Safe Neighborhood Heroes Grant program. The monies will go toward costs associated with replacing some of our aging K-9s. We recently had to purchase three new dogs due to medical and old age retirements, costs that we were not expecting in this budget year.

We welcome the new Sam's Club to the south Lakeland area and thank them for their generous grant donation to our K-9 program.

-Asst Chief Bill LePere

Just How Smart Are Your Police K-9s?

Ever wonder just how smart police K-9s really are? Here is a story to illustrate that our dogs are sometimes smarter than their officers.

Neighborhood officers were recently involved in a graffiti removal project in a southwest Lakeland neighborhood. The project involved painting over some gang markings that threatened to harm Lakeland Police officers working the area. We take these threats seriously and got permission of property owners to get rid of the vandalism right away. We are just not going to let some street thugs think they can mark their territory, put a neighborhood in fear, and threaten to kill police officers.

K-9 Officer Jeff Barrett comes along and offers to assist in the effort. The photo to the right shows him working with a paint roller. Carefully examine the photo and you will quickly see that it looks like Barrett has never used a paint roller before today.

To the rescue comes his K-9 partner, Beno, who has to show his master how to correctly use the tool and apply the paint in the photo below.

We have always believed that our police K-9s were some of the smartest in the business. We now have proof of that fact!

Our thanks to all the officers who participated in removing this gang graffiti. Special thanks to Home Depot for donating the paint needed to cover the graffiti. And we owe special thanks to Officer Barrett and K-9 Beno for posing for these photos and showing that officers do have a sense of humor.

-Asst Chief Bill LePere