GRAND RAPIDS, MI – A benchmarking analysis of the Grand Rapids Police Department’s K-9 deployment policies revealed that while the department actively uses many national best practices, those tactics are missing from its official written policy.
The Office of Oversight and Public Accountability is recommending the police department make nine policy changes to ensure those national standards are explicitly codified in its policies.
Those recommendations include establishing explicit protections for vulnerable populations like juveniles or elderly persons, requiring supervisor approval for police dog deployments, and limiting K-9 apprehensions to serious violent or armed suspects…