Died – 1\/29\/22<\/p>\n
Handler \u2013 Officer <\/strong>Joel Fann\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Truly one of a kind… K9 Deputy Rigley dies<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n On Feb. 1, Joel Fann celebrated his 10th year with the Lincoln County Sheriff\u2019s Office. It was a bittersweet celebration, as the patrol sergeant mourned the recent loss of a family member and partner. Before moving to patrol division, Fann served as a K9 handler – and for nearly four years – Rigley was his right hand. While speaking pragmatically, Fann said losing Rigley was losing a family member. \u201cWhen you\u2019re a K9 handler, you put in your head they\u2019re a tool. Rigley was a fully-trained tool,\u201d he said. \u201cHe apprehended people. He would go into buildings just before us. \u201cHis job was to manage the dangers before us.\u201d In addition to going on manhunts for the LCSO, Rigley and Fann were also called out to assist on drug busts, and were called to assist on traffic stops by other departments to perform \u201copen-air\u201d searches. Fann said K9 units like Rigley are important to every community, regardless of the cost. \u201cWe\u2019ve gotten so many drugs off the streets. We were nailing it,\u201d he said. \u201cIt seemed like multiple times in a single shift, whether it be us, or assisting other agencies. \u201cPeople don\u2019t realize how important law enforcement canines are to the community. They\u2019re an important tool.\u201d Despite all of the busts and drugs taken off the street, what made Rigley different, according to Fann, was his kindness and affability, especially around children. \u201cHe was a family member and a member of the community. He was also sociable,\u201d Fann said. \u201cHe would bark at the car, because he was protective of the car – and that was his job – but if I let him out of the car to meet with the public, he was the sweetest dog.\u201cThere wasn\u2019t another dog like him.\u201d Unfortunately, while tracking a suspect last month, Rigley didn\u2019t seem like his old self and laid down during the search.\u00a0Fann knew something was terribly wrong, and took the dog to see a veterinarian. \u201cThe support I\u2019ve gotten from the Sheriff\u2019s Office through this has been amazing,\u201d he said. \u201cI brought (Rigley) to the (University of Missouri\u2019s) Vet Clinic, because he was slower than usual.\u201d Blood work was taken, and it was\u00a0\u00a0abnormal. As time went on, Rigley developed breathing problems, and Fann returned to the clinic. This time, the news wasn\u2019t promising. Emergency surgery was needing to save Rigley immediately, but due to multiple organ failure, it would only delay the inevitable by a few days. On Jan. 29, Fann had to make the difficult choice to say goodbye to his partner and family member.\u201c(The vet) was really nice, but I could tell (the news) wasn\u2019t good,\u201d Fann said. \u201cThe support I was given was amazing (during the process). They told me what I needed to do, I could decided to do. \u201cI knew it was about quality of life, so it was a tough decision to put (Rigley) down.\u201d Which is what makes Rigley\u2019s final apprehension likely his most amazing, because he was likely suffering from those symptoms back then. On Oct. 29, Amy Sue Lovelace led Elsberry police officers on a wild chase before crashing her SUV into a tree and a mobile home. Lovelace then barricaded herself inside her vehicle before igniting a small industrial blowtorch, and injured an officer who tried to pull her out of the vehicle with it. Fann and Rigley were called to the scene. Though she attempted to burn him with the torch, Rigley was able to extract Lovelace from the vehicle. \u201cAfter (Lovelace) tried to burn him – and us – he still did his job. It didn\u2019t faze him,\u201d Fann said. \u201cSeeing this girl trying to harm him didn\u2019t bother him.\u201d Fann said he lost a more than a dog, he lost a partner, a friend and a family member. He said when he and Rigley went on shifts – and they were a man short – he knew he would be fine, because he had Rigley watching his back. \u201cThe county lost a good one\u201d Fann said. \u201cWe\u2019ve gotten so many drugs off the street. \u201cThat was one less opportunity for someone to get addicted, or someone to get hurt, because we found who we were looking for.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Died – 1\/29\/22 Handler \u2013 Officer Joel Fann\u00a0 Truly one of a kind… K9 Deputy Rigley dies\u00a0\u00a0 On Feb. 1, Joel Fann celebrated his 10th year with the Lincoln County Sheriff\u2019s Office. It was a bittersweet celebration, as the patrol sergeant mourned the recent loss of a family member and partner. Before moving to patrol …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11844,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[55],"class_list":["post-11842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-k9memorial","tag-mo"],"yoast_head":"\n