Died 6\/21\/22
\nHandler \u2013 Officer Mike Kelly<\/p>\n
Former Manteca Police Department narcotics K9 passes away<\/p>\n
For more than five years, when Mike Kelly came to work at the Manteca Police Department he rode in with his partner. Bella, a Dutch shepherd that had previously worked for the Stockton Police Department, was paired up with Kelly from 2015 until her retirement in 2020 \u2013 at the age of 12.While she spent the last few years enjoying her much-earned leisure time and developed an especially strong bond with Kelly\u2019s granddaughter, Bella entered into rest on Tuesday at the age of 14. \u201cIt is definitely a really hard day,\u201d said Kelly, whose time as a K9 officer overlapped with his time as the officer best known for working closely with the homeless and helping to facilitate their transition off the streets. \u201cShe was 14 years old \u2013 her hips just gave out on her.\u201dBella was a K9 patrol dog in Stockton before she came to the Manteca Police Department, where she was trained in narcotics.Until her retirement in 2020, Bella would ride with Kelly as he made the rounds to each of Manteca\u2019s homeless encampments and public camping spaces where he had developed a rapport with the unsheltered in the community \u2013 often serving as their alarm clock in places like Library Park when the allowed camping window would end.Kelly said that she will picked up from the veterinarian\u2019s office on Monday where she will be transported to be cremated, and will be moved in a casket that will draped with an American flag \u2013 a tribute to her years working with law enforcement throughout San Joaquin County.While Kelly loved his time as a police officer working with Bella, he said that the thing that he\u2019ll remember most \u2013 the memory brought laughter on a day that was lacking it for him \u2013 was when he made the investment to have carpet laid in his home only for Bella to remove it a week later.\u201cShe was a great dog around my grandkids,\u201d Kelly said. \u201cI lost it when my granddaughter started balling.\u201dWorking police dogs \u2013 and other animals that assist in the duties of law enforcement \u2013 are considered officers and receive specialized state and federal protection as a result. While the customs vary depending on jurisdiction, some police dogs are formally sworn in just like any other officer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Died 6\/21\/22 Handler \u2013 Officer Mike Kelly Former Manteca Police Department narcotics K9 passes away For more than five years, when Mike Kelly came to work at the Manteca Police Department he rode in with his partner. Bella, a Dutch shepherd that had previously worked for the Stockton Police Department, was paired up with Kelly …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":12471,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[10],"class_list":["post-12469","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-k9memorial","tag-ca"],"yoast_head":"\n