1

Greer's canine officers protect and serve

The Greer Police Department welcomed its newest officers to the force amid much fanfare last September, as a battalion of news reporters witnessed Mayor Rick Danner administer the oath of office.

The officer raised his paw and barked.

Atos, a two-year-old shepherds, officially joined GPD’s K-9 Unit and displayed their agility and drug sniffing skills at the city's police range. The dogs will be used for tracking and drug detection, according to Capt. Jolene Vancil.

"They're called out several times a year. If an officer has a suspicion about a car, the dogs will be called to come out and do a sniff around it," she said. "We don't do a lot of tracking, but they're there if we ever need them. Of course they go along (with the Emergency Reponse Team) on any raids or search warrant work."

Through the oath of office, Atos has sworn to protect and serve the citizens of Greer; to assist their handlers in enforcing the law; to search for lost children; to find illegal drugs; to track suspects; to be goodwill ambassadors for the Greer Police Department; and to always be the best dogs possible.

As the dogs barked their affirmation under handlers Jim Williams, video cameras captured the smiles of those in attendance. While the ceremony may have appeared to be a made-for-television event, it actually served an important purpose.

"The dog is now classified as a police officer and anyone who does any injury to him would receive a very similar penalty as if they assaulted a human police officer. We consider hm to be just as much of the department as the humans are," Capt. Vancil said.

The city's K-9 unit was formed more than 15 years ago when a black labrador retriever named Murray joined the force. The department once boasted four patrol dogs at one time, but Atos has been professionally trained specifically for tracking and drug detection and are used accordingly. Their ongoing training includes agility work in Greer on the certified course built by Williams for the dogs.

Top: Atos.
Above: Atos runs the training course circuit.