Mentor Police Getting New Canine Officers With Help of Muni Court, Public Support

Mentor Police Department will have a new police dog by the end of the year and a second by mid-year 2012, Chief Daniel Llewellyn said.

The first will be paid for by the ; the second, by Mentor residents and organizations.

The department has been without a canine officer since May when .

Mentor's K-9 program is supported entirely by donations; so when Niko died, the department knew it wanted to replace him but did not immediately have the means.

Then the police got a call from Judge John Trebets.

"Judge Trebets contacted us and told us he'd decided to pay for the first dog and its training," Llewellyn said.

While the court is paying for the dog, the money is not coming from taxpayers, Trebets explained. Instead, the court will use fees paid by people on probation.

"We're fortunate in that I created a probation supervisory fund many years ago," Trebets said. "With this money, we're able to help with the K-9 program."

The judge added that the new K-9 officer will also help the court by giving those on probation random drug spot checks.

Similarly, organizations like the , and the crossing guards donated to the K-9 program. Several Mentor residents also gave money. Some donated as much as $150.

The department plans to use these donations -- as well as more that are hopefully forthcoming -- to buy and train a second dog.

Though these dogs have not been selected yet, they already have partners: Patrolmen Terry Wurgler and William Mackey.

"They went through a selection process," Llewellyn said.

He added that Patrolman Rich Gerber, K-9 Bronco's partner, is helping prepare Wurgler and Mackey.

Llewellyn thanked everyone who has given to the K-9 program.

The department is still accepting donations and anyone who wants to give can call the Mentor Police Department at 440-974-5760.