K9 Tracking: A Piece of the Investigative Puzzle

It’s night shift, an alert tone sounds and dispatch broadcasts an all unit response in reference to a home invasion that has just occurred at an apartment complex across town. While officers are enroute, dispatch advises that a male kicked in the back door of a home and fled on foot after being confronted by a resident inside. Officers arrive, secure the scene, and set up a perimeter for a K9 track. 

You ready your K9 partner. Starting at the back door where the suspect was last seen, you deploy your dog to conduct the track. He immediately picks up a scent trail and begins tracking. Having spent time training and learning your dog’s behavior, you can tell that this is a good track and you are likely right on the heels of the suspect. You and your partner are making turns, jumping ditches, and traversing different terrain and he is not letting up at all. He is still tracking strongly. You emerge from the brush and continue tracking through a neighborhood. You track through several yards coming to a roadway where your partner then lifts his head and stops tracking.  Like any good K9 handler, you begin working the roadway and casting your K9 partner on the opposite side and both directions. You even take him back to the point where he was last tracking and recast him. He again tracks to the road and stops. You terminate the K9 track and return to your vehicle.  

The next day you see the daily activity log posted advising on coming officers of the incident. The paragraph explains that there was a home invasion and what initial responding officers had done on scene. One particular line reads: “A K9 track was conducted with negative results.” But was this really the case? 

Unlocking the maximum potential that you have as a K9 team begins with the understanding that your job goes far beyond just holding the leash. A track is not just a track. It can be easy for handlers to get in the mindset of just showing up, doing dog things, and leaving the rest up to the reporting officers. This mindset cannot only produce an investigation that is subpar, but it can also have adverse effects on handler confidence which we all know runs down lead. 

“A track is not just a track.” 

Whether you catch the suspect at the end of the track or not, a lot of valuable information can be gained from examining the tracking operation itself. By examining the track I don't mean telling the detective “the track went this way” and then hopping back into your patrol car and heading to the store for your next energy drink. It’s your job to examine your track and gather any potential evidence that could aid in the investigation as a whole. So how do we examine the track?

The best practice for examining the track is to forgo hitching a ride back to your vehicle in favor of walking back to your car along the same path that the K9 track followed. Along the way you should be looking for any cameras, witnesses, and physical evidence. As you know these things can play a huge part in the success of the investigation.

Cameras

As you locate cameras, notate their location. One way that you can do this is to tell your backup officer to relay via radio any addresses that you pass that have cameras on the outside. This can be done during the tracking operation or as you are walking the route of the track afterwards. Pass this information along to detectives or go back and review the footage yourself if time permits. Best case scenario is that the camera shows your suspect taking the path in which you tracked, thus giving you an image of the suspect and corroborating your K9 track. Another thing to look for is the same vehicle appearing multiple times on camera during the timeframe that you were tracking. This could be indicative of someone who was circling the area attempting to pick up the suspect. If a license plate is visible this would be a lead to follow up on as well. 

Witnesses

If while you are tracking you notice anyone in the area who may be working in their yard or standing in an area that you passed along the track, stop and make contact with them along your way back. Conduct a quick interview with them to see if they witnessed any valuable information such as seeing the suspect himself. If they did in fact see the suspect, get their description of him/her. Ask the witness if they saw the suspect doing anything other than fleeing such as tossing something, removing clothing, etc. Be sure to also ask the witness if they saw any vehicles circulating the area. These are only a few examples of information that could be useful. Be sure to ask any other questions that could provide pertinent information to the investigation. 

Physical Evidence

Another reason I am a proponent of following the path of the track back afterwards is the chance of finding physical evidence. We all spend a great deal of time training our dogs to find articles on tracks, however, there is always the chance that they have missed something. Oftentimes as I am walking the track back I will allow my partner to roam around me freely while remaining on the long line. This will allow him the freedom to explore and potentially locate any tossed or lost items along the way that may have initially been missed. If there is strong reason to believe that the suspect has in fact tossed evidence then I will take the time to conduct a thorough article search of the area along the way back. 

Putting It All Together

Once you have gathered all the possible information and evidence out of your tracking operation, take the time to thoroughly document all of it. You know your K9 partner. You know his limitations and capabilities better than anyone else. If there is something that he has shown you that you feel strongly about, i.e. particular interest in a house, vehicle, area, etc. be sure to make that known.  K9 operations that don't end with the bad guy immediately in handcuffs can and will often be overlooked by other officers. Be sure to notify the case officer or investigating detective of all your findings and K9 indications. It is very possible that the path of your K9 track leads to a conviction whether the suspect was at the end or not.