K9 Units in Public Transportation: A Guide for Decision Makers (2002)

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111 APPENDIX I: SAMPLE CERTIFICATION STANDARDS TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Objectives 2. Types of Certification 3. Failure to Meet Standards 4. Certification Tests 5. Certification Evaluators 6. Records of Certification 7. Certification Fees 8. General Certification Rules and Requirements 8.1. Narcotics Detection Certification 8.2. Explosives Detection Certification 8.3. Tracking/Trailing Certification 8.4. Patrol Utilization Certification 1. OBJECTIVES ❐ To ensure that police dog teams used by [THE AGENCY] are properly trained in order to protect the lives and property of its passengers, employees, contractors, and all others who come into contact with the system. ❐ To provide a standard which all trained police dogs must maintain in the performance of their duties. ❐ To ensure that the handlers have adequate knowledge of the laws regarding the use of canines. ❐ To prevent malicious use of partially and untrained police dogs. ❐ To provide recertification on a timely basis in order to maintain the integrity and credibility of police dog teams. 2. TYPES OF CERTIFICATIONS All police dogs must be certified in the specific areas in which they are trained. The following certifications will be given and maintained by the [THE AGENCY]: ❐ narcotics detection; ❐ tracking/trailing; ❐ explosives detection; and ❐ patrol utilizations. These certifications of the police dogs are on a PASS/FAIL basis. The certification will be based on the ability to perform the tasks set forth by the procedures adopted by the [THE AGENCY]. All certifications shall be undertaken by the canine and the current handler. The certification shall be valid for [ONE OR TWO YEARS], and recertification will be given on a timely basis.

112 3. FAILURE TO MEET STANDARDS Police dog teams that fail to meet the standards of certification shall be given the opportunity to retest in the area of standards they did not achieve. The retest will be given at the end of that certification period, if time permits, or within 30 days from the date of failure. Failure to achieve the standards on the retest shall result in a recommendation by the [THE AGENCY] to remove the team from actual deployment of that particular utilization until certification can be obtained. 4. CERTIFICATION TESTS The certification tests will be conducted [AT LOCATION SPECIFIED BY THE AGENCY]. 5. CERTIFICATION EVALUATORS Each certification must have two evaluators. The evaluators will be approved by the executive board of [THE AGENCY]. They will be determined by experience, knowledge and background. Evaluators will submit a resume to be kept on file for reference in the future. An evaluator may not participate in a certification of a police dog that he or she originally trained. The evaluators will critique the handler verbally following each exercise and will forward their written results and recommendations to the governing body of the [THE AGENCY]. There will be an alternate evaluator available at each certification. Out-of-state evaluators are acceptable with board and membership approval. 6. RECORDS OF CERTIFICATION The [THE AGENCY] secretary will be responsible for maintaining records of the certification for each police dog team that participates. 7. CERTIFICATION FEES [THE AGENCY] may pay a fee to the evaluators for each team requiring certification or recertification. There will be no additional fee required for retesting during the same certification period. 8. GENERAL CERTIFICATION RULES AND REQUIREMENTS ❐ All dog teams must submit previous training records to the evaluators prior to their certification. ❐ Electronic devices, spiked collars, whistles, balls, or any other item viewed as an influence or used to control the dog, may not be utilized during any phase of the certification.

113 ❐ Any dog team wishing to be retested must submit in writing to the [THE AGENCY] their recertification requirements and scheduling. This must be done prior to the lapse of the 30-day recertification period. ❐ PASS/FAIL decisions by the evaluators are final. Any appeals will be submitted in writing as soon as possible to the [THE AGENCY] board for review and consideration for retesting. 8.1 NARCOTICS DETECTION CERTIFICATION 1. There will be a total of three types of searches conducted: ❐ vehicle search; ❐ building or residential search; and ❐ parcel search (may include luggage, envelope, boxes, etc.). 2. The searches will include the following narcotics: ❐ marijuana; ❐ cocaine or crack cocaine; and ❐ heroin. (Note: any team wishing to certify in any other narcotic must notify the hosting system in writing 10 days prior to certification.) 3. All narcotics will be tested for quality prior to certification. 4. Pseudo-narcotics will not be used in the certification. 5. All of the test hides will be at least 5 grams in weight, not to exceed 20 grams. 6. The narcotics will be hidden in practical areas and allowed to age for 30 minutes prior to the first team's test. 7. During the test, only the handler and two evaluators will be allowed in search area. 8. In each of the searches, enticement articles such as food, soiled clothing, empty plastic bags, etc. may be used to thoroughly test the dog's ability. 9. The dog must make the alert obvious to the evaluators, and as close to the hide as possible. 10. There will be a total of nine possible indications of narcotics during the test. The dog must be able to locate a minimum of six hides in order to achieve certification, or two out of three tested. 11. One false indication during the certification will be evaluated as a failure to locate. Two false indications will result in the failure of the entire narcotics certification.

114 12. Dog teams will be given certification for the type of narcotics located, provided requirement #11 does not apply. 13. Each dog team will have separate sets of vehicles, rooms, and parcels for the narcotics detection certification. Vehicles ❐ There will be a total of six vehicles used. These may be of various sizes and models. ❐ There will be three test hides concealed on the vehicle. ❐ There will be two enticement articles hidden during the test. ❐ One vehicle will remain clean of any articles or narcotics. ❐ There will be a 15-minute time limit to search all six vehicles. ❐ There will only be one hide or enticement per vehicle. There will be one outside hide and two inside hides. Buildings ❐ The building search shall consist of a minimum of two rooms with a minimum 1,000-square-foot total area. ❐ There will be three hides concealed, one for each of the narcotics. ❐ Two of the enticement articles will be hidden. ❐ The narcotic may be hidden at any height, with a maximum height of 6 feet. ❐ There will be a 15-minute time limit to search the two rooms. Parcels ❐ Parcels shall consist of three columns of six packages each. Packages will be a minimum of 3 feet apart. ❐ There will be one test hide in each column of parcels. ❐ Two enticement articles will be hidden in each column, ❐ There will be a 10-minute time limit to search the three columns. 8.2 EXPLOSIVES DETECTION CERTIFICATION 1. There will be a total of three types of searches conducted: ❐ vehicle searches; ❐ building or residential search; and ❐ parcel search. 2. The searches may include any or all of the following explosive odors: ❐ TNT; ❐ C-4;

115 ❐ Smokeless powder; ❐ Water gel; ❐ Commercial dynamite (nitrate and ammonia based); ❐ Detonation cord; ❐ Sodium chlorate; ❐ Potassium chlorate; and ❐ Black powder. 3. The explosives will be hidden in practical areas and allowed to age for 30 minutes prior to the first team's test. 4. During the test, only the handler/dog team and the evaluators will be allowed in the test area. 5. In each of the searches, enticement articles such as food, soiled clothing, empty plastic bags, balls, etc. will be used to thoroughly test the dog's ability. 6. The dog must make the alert obvious to the evaluators and as close to the hides as possible. 7. There will be a total of nine possible indications during this test. The dog must be able to locate at least eight of the nine odors. 8. One false alert and/or any aggressive response will be evaluated as one failure to locate. Two false indications and/or aggressive responses will result in the failure of the entire explosives detection certification. 9. Each of the dog teams will have separate sets of vehicles, rooms, and parcels for the explosives detection certification. 8.3 TRACKING/TRAILING CERTIFICATION 1. The purpose of this certification is to determine the dog's ability to locate a suspected criminal or a lost person. 2. The track will consist of a minimum of three and a maximum of five of the following terrains: ❐ field; ❐ gravel; ❐ leaves; ❐ creek bed; ❐ dirt; ❐ concrete; ❐ woods; ❐ asphalt; and ❐ high grass. 3. The track will be a minimum of 30 minutes old and a maximum of 1 hour old.

116 4. The track will be a minimum length of 300 yards and a maximum length of 500 yards. 5. There will be one scent article placed along the track (dog team will not be penalized for failure to locate the article). 6. The tracking team will be given a starting point and the direction of travel by the evaluators. 7. There will be one cross-track laid. This person will remain in the area of the actual track, but must remain at a minimum distance of 200 yards from the actual track layer. This cross-track may be laid prior to, or after, the actual track. 8. There will be a 20-minute time limit to complete the track. 9. The team will successfully pass this certification by locating the actual track layer. 10. If it is obvious to the evaluators that the dog is not tracking/trailing, the evaluators may stop the test at any time. 8.4 PATROL UTILIZATION CERTIFICATION 1. Any or all testing may be conducted at night or during daylight hours. 2. The police dog must demonstrate control during the control phase before being allowed to test any further. 3. The dog team will be certified in the areas in which they prove to be proficient. 4. The agility of the dog will be evaluated during all phases of the test. 5. The dog team will be evaluated in the following areas: ❐ Obedience/control; ❐ Evidence search; ❐ Area search; ❐ Building search; ❐ Vehicle stops; and ❐ Criminal apprehension. Obedience/Control ❐ The dog must demonstrate control before being allowed to test further. ❐ This test may be conducted on fields, asphalt, concrete, etc., at the discretion of the evaluators and location availability. All dogs will be tested under the same conditions. ❐ This testing will be conducted off lead. ❐ The dog team must accomplish the following tasks in any order. However, the order shall remain the same for each dog. At the direction of the evaluator, each dog handler will heel their dog approximately 60 paces including fast and slow

117 pacing, a minimum of one left, one right, and one about-turn, and a minimum of two halts. ❐ The dog will be placed in a sit or down at the discretion of the handler and told to stay. The handler will then leave the sight of the dog for approximately 2 minutes. The dog will then be called to the handler by voice. ❐ The dog will be placed in a sit or down at the discretion of the handler and told to stay. The handler will then leave the dog, walk approximately 100 feet, turn, and call the dog by hand. The handler will halt the dog approximately halfway on command, then call the dog to him or her verbally. ❐ Dog will be placed in a sit or down at the discretion of the handler and told to stay. The handler will walk away approximately 100 feet, wait a minimum of 1 minute, turn, and verbally call the dog to him or her. Note: the dog team will not be penalized for the way the dog heels, sits, downs, etc. The dog will be evaluated only to the point of basic control that the dog and the handler demonstrate. Evidence Search ❐ This test will be conducted in approximately a 1/2-acre area with one article hidden. ❐ The dog will be tested on its ability to locate and indicate the article to the handler. ❐ The area may consist of woods, weeds, high grass, underbrush, etc. ❐ There will be a 10-minute limit for the dog to go out and locate the article. ❐ The article will age for 30 minutes before the first team is tested. ❐ The article will be scented by breath, hand, etc. for approximately 1 minute. ❐ Articles may consist of the following: metal gun, wrench, hat, wallet/pocketbook, knife, screwdriver, or other item. ❐ The dog must indicate the article to the handler in order to be certified in this area. ❐ Handlers may enter the area to be searched; however, the dog must make the actual find obvious to the evaluators. ❐ Each dog team will be tested with a new article and in a different search area. Area Search ❐ The area search may consist of the following types of terrain: woods, fenced vehicle compound (shop or yard), pedestrian mall, walkway, or business district. ❐ The area search may be conducted on or off lead, at the handler's discretion. ❐ The dog will be tested on its ability to locate a subject in an open environment. ❐ The subject will be hidden for 15 minutes before each team is tested. ❐ The test will have a 15-minute time limit. ❐ The dog must make a clear indication to the evaluators as to the location of the subject.

118 ❐ If the dog and handler pass the hidden subject during the search, this is considered to be automatic failure. Building Search ❐ The building search will be conducted off lead. ❐ The dog will be tested on its ability to locate a subject in an enclosed structure. ❐ The building shall be a minimum of 2000 square feet, and a maximum of 5000 square feet. ❐ The subject will be hidden for 15 minutes before each team is tested. ❐ The test will have a 15-minute time limit. ❐ The dog must make a clear indication to the evaluators as to the location of the subject. ❐ If the dog and handler pass the hidden subject during the search, this is considered to be automatic failure. Vehicle Stops ❐ The vehicle stops will consist of three separate stops: o dog stays in vehicle; o dog is called to handler from vehicle; and o handler is assaulted while dog is in vehicle. ❐ The phases may be conducted in any order. ❐ Evaluators will decide what will occur on each stop (i.e., conversation or assault). ❐ After each stop, the dog will remain in the vehicle for a minimum of 30 seconds awaiting evaluator's instructions. ❐ The dog team must successfully complete the three vehicle stops to achieve certification. ❐ On the assault portion of this phase, the dog and handler will be evaluated under the guidelines of the criminal apprehension certification. Criminal Apprehension Criminal apprehension note: all suspects participating in the criminal apprehension testing will be required to wear full-body protection. The criminal apprehension phase of certification will consist of the following in any order: 1. The suspect will step out of concealment a minimum of 100 feet away from the team. The suspect will begin to run at a brisk pace away from the dog team. The dog will be instructed to apprehend. The suspect will then stop, turn, and surrender. The dog, at that time, must be recalled without apprehension. In an alternate version of this exercise, the suspect will step out of concealment a minimum distance of 100 feet away from the team. The suspect will begin to run at a brisk pace away from the dog team. The dog will be instructed to apprehend. The handler will be told to recall the dog; however, the suspect will continue to run away. The recall will be conducted approximately halfway

119 between the handler and the suspect. The dog may not have any physical contact with the suspect. Note: physical contact by the dog with the suspect during either of the above exercises will result in failure of this portion of the criminal apprehension certification. Note: each handler will have a leash at all times. 2. The suspect will step out of concealment a minimum distance of 100 feet away from the team. The suspect will then begin running away from the team. The handler will send the dog to apprehend the suspect and command the dog to release when instructed to do so. The handler will then command the dog to sit, down, heel, and/or to stay. The handler will approach the suspect, handcuff the suspect, and escort the suspect to the evaluators. The team will fail this portion of the certification if any of the following occur: o the dog re-bites after being called off; o the dog fails to release; o the handler makes physical contact with the dog; o the dog fails to apprehend; and o the dog bites the suspect during the escort. Note: The dog will be on/off leash during the escort. However, the handler must maintain physical contact with the suspect until reaching the evaluators. 3. The suspect will step out of concealment a minimum distance of 100 feet away from the team. The suspect will fire one or two shots from a gun and no more. The handler and dog must seek available cover and return fire (a minimum of two rounds). The dog will not be sent to apprehend. The team will fail this portion of the certification if any of the following occur: o the dog blatantly pulls the handler from cover/concealment; o the dog apprehends the suspect; o the dog bites the handler; or o if it appears to the evaluators that the handler is out from cover. 4. The handler will approach the suspect and have the dog sit, or down and stay. The handler and suspect will then conduct a handshake and conversation for approximately 30 seconds. The suspect may then, at the discretion of the evaluators, assault the handler. The dog must protect the handler by apprehension, and then release when commanded to do so. The handler must then escort the suspect to the evaluators. The team will fail this portion of the certification if any of the following occur: o the dog re-bites after being called off; o the dog fails to apprehend; o the dog fails to release; o the handler makes physical contact with the dog;

120 o the dog makes an unprovoked apprehension of the suspect; or o the dog bites the suspect during the escort. 5. If no assault is made during exercise 4 (above), the handler will be instructed to return to the dog, secure the dog, and walk away from the suspect. 6. To receive certification in the criminal apprehension portion, the team must satisfactorily perform the four phases. 7. The release of the actual apprehension (bite) will be at the discretion of the evaluators. Once the evaluator has given instruction for the release, the handler will have a total of 5 seconds to accomplish the release. The 5-second period will begin after the handler's first verbal command. Any dog that does not release within the specified time will fail the criminal apprehension certification. 8. The dog will be off leash during the entire phase of the criminal apprehension certification, with the exception of the escort, which is at the handler's discretion. 9. Evaluators will instruct the handlers when to send the dog for apprehension, when to recall from apprehension, when to release, etc.