Lynchburg council transfers K9 unit to Greenfield

The Lynchburg Village Council has voted to transfer their K-9 unit to the Greenfield Police Department. 

Council met for their regular session last week and voted 5-1 to transfer the program, with council member James Flowers voting against the transfer. 

Lynchburg Mayor Robbie Wallace disbanded the K-9 unit effective Jan. 3, citing financial reasons. A safety levy for the village did not pass during the November general election. When the safety levy did not pass, the village lost $70,000 in potential funds. The levy will be on the primary ballot in March. However, if it should pass, the village could not begin collecting the funds until May 2013. The levy was defeated in November with 200 votes for it and 212 votes against it. 

During the Jan. 13 meeting of council, after more than 30 minutes in executive session, council voted unanimously to allow the mayor to "negotiate with other agencies" their use of the K-9 unit. 

While it was a tough decision, Wallace said that it was one based on finances alone and what was best for the village at this time. 

Wallace said that he first approached the Hillsboro Police Department, which said it was unable to take the dog because of funding issues. Greenfield was the second department he approached, and Chief Tim Hester welcomed the dog, as well as Sgt. Dustin Malone as a part-time officer. Malone will continue to work for Lynchburg as a part-time officer. 

The Lynchburg K-9 program will be transferred into Greenfield's program and will include the dog, vehicle and equipment. Hester said that any time the LPD is in need of a unit, they will not hesitate to offer assistance. Wallace said that the Highland County Sheriff Ron Ward has said the same of their K-9 unit. 

"What this really does is just open up the use of the K-9 (for other departments)," Wallace said.

Hester told The Highland County Press that the GPD is happy to have the transfer and willing to assist the LPD in any way. 

"It is an excellent addition to our agency," Hester said. "Another dog and K-9 vehicle allows us to have a unit on patrol for each shift, which will be very beneficial in our drug interdiction. I talked with Mayor Wallace and assured him that should there be any time the Lynchburg Police Department is in need of assistance, we will be more than happy to respond." 

Wallace said that there was a misconception in the village that the donations that were used to start the K-9 program in 2011 would be used to sustain it. However, there were not enough funds to cover the total costs. Malone, the K-9 officer, had to go to training one day a week, there was a special vehicle for the dog, and there were insurance costs. 

With the transfer of the K-9 vehicle, that leaves the LPD with three vehicles. However, one is currently out of commission because of damage sustained during a pursuit earlier this year. LPD Chief Tim Heizer said that he is working to get the vehicle back in working order. 

During the course of discussion of the transfer, Lynchburg resident Andy Knope expressed his disappointment that the K-9 unit had not been called in during a manhunt that had taken place earlier in the week following an alleged domestic violence incident. Knope said that the suspect allegedly accosted one of his children and two others while they were walking to church. 

Heizer and village solicitor Fred Beery said that the suspect, although his name was not immediately known, had been apprehended and was facing felony charges. Heizer and Wallace explained that a police dog has specific functions, and the K-9 the LPD had was trained to find drugs, not to track. 

Following the meeting, Malone told The Highland County Press that his "canine is certified through the State of Ohio as a dual purpose dog. That means not only does she detect illegal narcotics but she also does track people along with article searches, building searches, area searches, protection/apphrension." 

Wallace said that he did not like it being alluded that he did not take the police or village security seriously. 

"I have taken two oaths to risk my life for this country and for this state," Wallace said. "I take security very, very seriously. I have been in situations where I've put my life in danger. That is something I don't take lightly. I have been told that since I've been in this position that someone has put a death threat on my life. That not only affects me, it affects my family in a big way. I am concerned about kids who have to wait for the bus when we have sex offenders living in the village. It's a very big concern ... I take public safety very seriously."