Death of police dog in hot car sparks outrage, investigation
The Long Beach Police Department has launched an internal investigation into the death of one of its police dogs who was found dead in his handler’s patrol car earlier this month from apparent overheating.
Ozzy, a 6-year-old Belgian Malinois-German shepherd mix, was found dead Aug. 14 in his handler’s department-issued vehicle while both were off-duty.
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Preliminary results from a veterinarian’s examination determined the death to have been heat-related. Officials initially said that the heat-controlling system inside the vehicle had failed, and that the alert system that was supposed to be connected to the handler’s cellphone had malfunctioned.
“After conducting a review of circumstances surrounding the death of K-9 Ozzy, the department has initiated an internal affairs investigation to obtain additional facts and information pertaining to the incident,” officials announced Wednesday on Facebook.
The Police Department would not provide further details about the investigation or what prompted it.
A Times request for information about how long Ozzy was left alone and whether it was confirmed that the heat-controlling system had malfunctioned and that the handler had set up the alert system prior to the dog’s death has so far gone unanswered.
Long Beach police have not identified Ozzy’s handler. Ozzy had worked as a K-9 for more than five years.
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2019-08-29/long-beach-police-launch-internal-investigation-into-k-9-death
= new reply since forum marked as read
it shouldn't have happened .... R-I-P Ozzy
