Copkilling in Blount County

K-9 Officer Hansen on right

WATE TV headline: "Blount County K-9 officer dead following chase of burglary suspects"

A second K-9 team was then called to the scene, Deputy Chris Morgan and K-9 Hansen.

They searched for the second suspect for 30 minutes. Then, the unthinkable happened.

"Once in the back of the car the K-9 collapsed and was taken to Village Vet with the other K-9 that was taken there for dehydration," said Sheriff Berrong.

K-9 Hansen received treatment for heat exhaustion, but was not responsive. He later died.

"Mainly, his body temperature got above 110 and once an animal gets above 107 it doesn't look good for the outcome of the animal," Berrong said.

The search for the remaining suspect was suspended due to the excessive heat around 3:30 p.m.

Deputy Nathan Payne was taken by Rural/Metro Ambulance Service to Blount Memorial Hospital.

He has since been released from the emergency room.

Bruno was treated for dehydration and released from the veterinary clinic.

"This circumstance with the heat, the heat index, is very unusual. We haven't had anything like this before," said Berrong.

KNS Comments:

MsPittsburgh writes:
This breaks my heart....charge this $$$-hole with manslaughter of a police officer and maybe all of the K-9 units need to give these dogs a break until this awful heat dies down a bit.

be_logical writes:
Surely this wasn't due to negligence on the part of the trained officer in charge of the animal?

jakethevolguy writes:
If the dog was owned by a private citizen he/she would be under investigation for animal cruelty. This was the fault of the handler not the criminals. I do admit if there hadn't been a crime this probably would not have happened.

slugdiamond writes:
Horrible. Tragic. Inexcusable. As a dog owner for many years, I fail to see how anyone can push an animal to the point they die from heat exhaustion. At no point in time would I continue pursuit of a simple burglary suspect when it puts the life of a partner in danger. I have a problem to start with putting an animal in a situation an armed human would not enter. If you push yourself to the point you can not function you not only endanger yourself, but those who depend on you as well.

pudgy102097#218220 writes:
I love dogs very much. Probably more than the vast majority of people in this world, but charge these people for the death of this dog? Seriously people. I love dogs and K-9 dogs but they are not people. Some perspective needs to be observed when thinking about dogs.

Engloid2 writes:
in response to southerngal: "Poor little guy died doing his job. I totally agree with Brian, charge these two thugs with manslaughter..." yeah, all except that it wasn't a MAN, much less even a human. Are they going to have a full military funeral for this "officer" now? Can we spend thousands of taxpayer dollars on a funeral service, receiving of friends, burial plot, headstone, and more? Maybe even a BBQ dinner for all the cops? I hate that this dog died, but saying the "thugs" should be charged with manslaughter is like charging somebody with murder for running over a squirrel in their car. It is a dog, no more and no less. I love animals, but an animal life is not as valuable as a human. If you want to argue this point, just go ahead and tell me that you'd rather have seen the human officer die than the dog....and yes, I would like to hear why the HUMAN officer is not being charge with animal abuse for driving his dog to the point of death. Even if he is not charged, he needs to relinquish his responsibilities of being a K9 officer. He should no longer be allowed to have a dog with him on the job. Other officers should be trained on how to recognize heat stroke and other problems in dogs...or not be allowed to have them on the job.

dragonator writes:
Corrected headline: "Blount County K9 Cop Kills Cop, Arrested for Animal Cruelty and Neglect." Who steals more from the taxslaves, teenage burglers or BCSO?

“I’ll burn your house down, set your dog on fire and there won’t be a member of your family left, do you understand me? I won’t hire it done, I will do it myself! Do you understand me?”
-Blount County sheriff James Berrong, United Stated Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit, Nuchols v. Berrong, No. 04-5645, July 11, 2005

Tennessee Auditors Arrive - 48 Blount Sheriff cars missing - "The state auditor arrived in the County a few weeks ago. The auditor was able to find only 239 vehicles. What happened to the other 48 vehicles? But the Sheriff wants the taxpayers to support a tax increase, so that he can have even more money to spend next year. Does this make sense to you?"

Blount County cops buy college degrees at massaage parlor - In August, after discovering another tuition reimbursement payment for an unaccredited college for Maryville Police Department Capt. Sharon Moore, The Daily Times requested tuition reimbursement reports from the past five years from the city of Alcoa, city of Maryville and Blount County. The only payments identified were for Moore and Blount County Circuit Court Clerk Tom Hatcher?s tuition that was discovered in 2006. On Nov. 20, The Daily Times requested that Berrong research reimbursements that were directly paid to individuals for out-of-pocket tuition payments to unaccredited schools. Berrong confirmed that Detective Lt. Danny Wilburn, Lt. Patrick England, K-9 Deputy Gary Perkins and Sgt. Rick Baker had all submitted invoices for tuition reimbursement from Columbus University and received reimbursement from the county. Neither the U.S. Department of Education nor the Council on Higher Education Accreditation recognizes Columbus University as an accredited school. It is commonly referred to as a ?diploma mill? by both organizations. In hopes to better himself for his family, the sheriff?s office and the community, Wilburn said he signed up for the program in 2003. He said the university had a professional Web site and he began a program to get a bachelor?s and master?s degree for approximately $3,500. Baker said Wilburn told him about the university and he also signed up for the program in hopes of obtaining a master?s degree. Baker got his bachelor?s degree from Lee College in 1988. The master?s program he signed up for with Columbus University cost between $2,500 and $3,000. Mayor Cunningham would not comment on the additional Columbus University tuition reimbursements, telling The Daily Times it was ?old news.? In 2004 following a CBS News expos鬠the state of Louisiana shut down Columbus University. A few months later it relocated in Picayune, Miss., where it operates today. Diploma mills are commonly defined as colleges or universities that require little or no course work from students. Many claim to offer credits for life and work experiences, and most operate exclusively on the Internet and by mail and have no campus. While online diploma mills typically provide bachelor?s and master?s degrees for less than $5,000 over a period of months, the College Board, a nonprofit association founded in 1900 to work with students and educational institutions, estimates that the average cost of a bachelor?s degree from a public university is now ?$87,000 to $200,000 and takes the average student 6.2 years to complete. A prospective student who drives to Columbus University would find an empty storefront at its address in Picayune, Miss., with a small ?Columbus University? sign taped in the window. Jeremy Pittari, a reporter for the Picayune Item newspaper, told The Daily Times he has investigated Columbus University in the past. ?Columbus University has a building here in Picayune,? Pittari said. ?But I?ve never seen anyone working there. ?There was a paper sign that said ?Columbus University? taped up in the front window for a while and a small sign on the front door instructing people to deliver any mail or packages to a business across the street.? The business across the street from Columbus University?s address is a massage parlor and ?body sculpting? studio. So far, the Mayor has done nothing to publicly chastise Hatcher. Hatcher said Tuesday he has not completed the master's program yet, but the $3,910 check issued by Blount County covered both a bachelor's degree and master's degree. "The county has no control over how the elected officials spend the money appropriated to their budgets," Cunningham said. Apparently, if you misuse funds in Blount County and get caught, all you have to do is repay the money, and all is well with the Mayor. Tom Hatcvher's son, Dustin Hatcher, was a county judicial commissioner, depsite only passing a test for car stereo installation. Judge Dustin Hatcher pled guilty to raping a teenage girl in the Justice Center, then posting photos of his crime on the wall in the Court Clerk's office. Dustin Hatcher was faced a five year prison sentence, but was sentenced to probation, after county taxpayers paid $40,000 to his rape victim. Clerk Tom Hatcher was formerly a deputy for the Blount County sheriff.

COP.
2. to steal; filch.
3. to buy (narcotics).
4. cop out, a. to avoid one's responsibility, the fulfillment of a promise, etc.; renege; back out.
5. cop a plea,
a. to plead guilty or confess in return for receiving a lighter sentence.
b. to plead guilty to a lesser charge as a means of bargaining one's way out of standing trial for a more serious charge; plea-bargain.
-Dictionary.com, Random House Unabridged Dictionary 2006

See also:

Loudon County cops kill dog during traffic stop

Cop Shoots Dog For Playing In Park, Police Are OK With It

Tennessee Cop Kills Dog As Cuffed Family Watches