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Died – 1/23/19
Handler – Sgt. Christopher Martinez
Newberry Township Police K-9 Tazer dies
Newberry Township Police K-9 Tazer, who had been with the department for more than 8 years, died Wednesday, the department announced. “K9 Tazer’s health recently deteriorated to the point that he had to be laid to rest today,” the department posted on its website. “Throughout his 8 ½ career with his handler, Sgt. Christopher Martinez, K9 Tazer successfully specialized in patrol, narcotics detection, and tracking.” K-9 Tazer had received several medals and four chief commendations during his service with the department. “K9 Tazer was a true warrior to the very end and will be missed by many,” the department posted to its website. The department shared the sad news on its Facebook page around 6:15 p.m Wednesday. That post was shared more than 500 times in 35 minutes. Tazer was a German Shepherd from the Czech Republic. He was trained for the department at Castle’s K-9s in Mechanicsburg. Tazer cost the department $13,000 back in 2010, but no tax dollars were used to purchase him, said then-Police Chief John Snyder. Instead, money from a fund the department had designated for community service as well as money from fund-raising efforts was used. Snyder said back in 2011 that the department chose to get a K-9 trained in narcotics detection because the department dealt with drugs a lot. Tazer’s special skills could be used in investigations when an officer suspected drugs hidden in a vehicle, but could’t get permission from its owner to conduct a search, for example.
