- The Jackson County Sheriff's Office welcomed two K9 deputies this week.
- Deputy DeeDee will serve in the field, and Deputy Sam will serve in the jail.
- Video shows Sheriff Schuette discussing the additions to the force.
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story)
The Jackson County Sheriff's Office announced two new deputies would be joining the force.
Deputy DeeDee and Deputy Sam will be joining the K9 unit. I spoke with Sheriff Schuette Wednesday to find out more about the new additions and how important they are for the department.
"It's incredibly important," Schuette said. "Both these dogs are tracking dogs."
Schuette said these K9s can help bring people back to safety.
"What we've experienced here just this year alone, we've had seven people that have been elderly dementia patients that have wandered away from their homes," Schuette said. "Having a tracking canine in those situations is critically important."
And it's not just out in the field that the canines will have an important role.
"In the jail it is so important because the jail that we have right now doesn't have body scanning devices for inmates that are coming in, and having a canine be able to do cursory sniffs, to be able to do cell sniffs is really important in recovery of contravand," Schuette said.
Schuette says Deputy Sam can also help any inmates dealing with mental health crises.
"She is also a therapy dog," Schuette said. "So she can assist us with a lot of out inmates who are going through a mental health crisis and assist them in a therapeutic way that I don't think is utilized enough in correctional facilities."
Both dogs were purchased through donations from the community.
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