K-9 police dog kicked, resulting in death
Miami, FL (US)Incident Date: Wednesday, Jun 7, 2006
County: Miami-Dade
Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Allen D Cockfield
Case Updates: 3 update(s) available
A source tells local news that a police dog died as the result of abuse by his partner-handler -- and Miami-Dade police are investigating the incident.
The 4-year-old K-9 named "Duke" collapsed during training on the evening of June 7. Duke was rushed to Knowles Animal Clinic, where he later died.
A source told Local 10 News that Duke had barked when he wasn't supposed to during a training exercise at the Miami Dade Training Bureau. He was participating in training with the rest of the K-9 unit. The source said that after Duke barked, his partner Sgt. Allen Cockfield "lost it" and kicked the dog several times.
The source said that Duke yelped and then fell unconscious. Cockfield shook the dog, and when he realized the dog was unconscious, he rushed him to the clinic, according to the source.
Detective Roy Rutland, a police spokesman, said that the circumstances of the dog's death were not clear.
''We treat these animals as good as we do police officers,'' Rutland said.
Veterinarians conducted a necropsy Thursday, but the results have not yet been released.
Friday, Miami-Dade police confirmed that they have opened an internal affairs investigation into the incident.
Cockfield has been a K-9 officer for 25 years and has had no record of any problems.
Case UpdatesThe trial of a Miami-Dade police officer accused of killing his canine partner was postponed Monday.
Sgt. Allen Cockfield is facing charges of animal cruelty and killing a police dog after police say he kicked the dog, named Duke, several times.
Cockfield is on leave without pay from the department. His attorney, Doug Hartman, said Monday his client is innocent and will take the case to trial.
The trial was rescheduled for Dec. 17. | Source: Miami Herald - Sept 24, 2007
Update posted on Sep 24, 2007 - 4:46PM |
Duke the police dog died of a lethally timed, heart-disrupting kick delivered by his handler, Miami-Dade Sgt. Allen Cockfield, police said Wednesday.
The longtime cop was arrested Wednesday, nearly a year after Duke collapsed during an outdoor training exercise.
Cockfield is charged with animal cruelty and killing a police dog, a third-degree felony that means he now will be relieved of duty without pay.
The arrest of a police trainer for killing his partner is rare.
''This is the first time I've ever heard of anything like that,'' Rob Hickman, the vice president of the North American Police Work Dog Association, said Wednesday.
Cockfield posted $6,000 bond on Wednesday evening. Cockfield's defense attorney, Douglas Hartman, called his arrest a "travesty of justice.''
''I'm stunned,'' Hartman said of the charges. "I've never seen a case like this. He is one of the best dog handlers in the department.''
The 4-year-old German shepherd collapsed June 7, 2006 during an ''obedience control'' exercise at the training bureau in West Miami-Dade. Duke was participating with 10 other officers and their dogs; no biting or attacking was involved, police said.
Cockfield denies kicking the dog, said Hartman, who suggested a genetic defect may have played a role in Duke's death.
After the incident, Cockfield was transferred to a desk job at the police operations bureau, which manages Metrorail stations, the seaport and courthouses.
He had been a K-9 officer for more than 20 years. Duke was Cockfield's fourth dog.
Duke, who cost $8,500, was one of three dogs the department bought to replace other aging canines. Miami-Dade uses its police dogs to hunt live suspects, corpses and to sniff for drugs and bombs.
Duke was trained for ''felony apprehension and would have eventually cross-trained for explosives,'' police said.
According to an arrest warrant, this is how the investigation unfolded:
Miami-Dade's Professional Compliance Bureau, or internal affairs, received an anonymous letter June 9. It claimed Cockfield, a 27-year officer, lifted Duke by the collar and kicked him "numerous times.''
The letter also was sent to media outlets.
The state does not certify kicking as a training method, the warrant notes.
Internal affairs Sgt. Damaris Palmer interviewed one lieutenant, two sergeants and seven officers present at the grassy training field that day.
Six of the 10 interviewed said they saw Cockfield kick Duke between three and six times.
''The officers state that as Sergeant Cockfield kicked Duke, they heard a yelp from Duke, he began to convulse and then became lifeless,'' Palmer wrote.
Cockfield then picked up Duke, the officers told Palmer, and carried him to his police car to take him to the clinic.
The dog died at the Knowles Animal Clinic, 1000 NW 27th Ave.
A necropsy did not reveal any internal bruising or trauma to the canine's chest. Duke's heart, spleen, stomach, liver, kidneys and pancreas were sent to a lab in New York; they all tested normal.
But Dr. Emma Lew, the assistant chief of Miami-Dade's medical examiner, concluded that the timing of the kick caused a lethal ''commotion of the heart'' -- a disturbance in his cardiac rhythm. | Source: The Miami Herald - May 31, 2007
Update posted on Jun 2, 2007 - 4:11PM |
A Miami-Dade K9 sergeant whose partner, a German shepherd named Duke, died this month during a training exercise, has been relieved of duty with pay pending the result of an internal investigation, police said. Internal affairs detectives are investigating allegations of animal abuse involving Sgt. Allen Cockfield, a 25-year veteran with no history of disciplines in his personnel file.
Cockfield and Duke were conducting weekly training on June 7, 2006 when they ''removed themselves from the main group and stayed in the southeast corner'' of a training range, according to a police report. ''One person noticed that the K-9. . .was on the ground and Sgt. Cockfield was attempting first aid for his canine partner,'' the report reads. The dog was later pronounced dead at an animal clinic.
Results of the necropsy have not been released yet. Tissue samples from the dead dog were sent to a Antech Diagnostics, a laboratory on Long Island | Source: Miami Herald - June 20, 2006
Update posted on Jun 29, 2006 - 11:46PM |
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