K4 Officer Jon Richey - Molly

I am Officer Jon Richey.  Nearly 25 years ago, I was the youngest police officer in the State of Utah at 19 years old of age.  I started working for the City of West Jordan in 1984 and on the day I was off of probationary status, I was transferred to the K9 Unit.  I worked with a “super-dog” named Bo which is what motivated me to work as a K9 handler for 17 years (and I’m still going!).  I have been directly involved in police and civilian K9 for 25 years and have worked as a Handler, Trainer and Judge.

I transferred to the Salt Lake City Police Department in 1988 where I was fortunate enough to be partnered with one of the best police service dogs in the world.  It’s true, I am biased about that statement but my boy Drago, who came into my family at 14 months of age, competed in three Countries, won two International Championships, five National (and/or North American Championships) and countless regional and local competitions.  Drago held more titles than any other dog that I know of including Utah Certifications DH, DH1, DH2, Tactical Deployment Dog; The National PSD1 (USPCA) title and International titles including BH, DPO1, DPO2, DPO3, and PSP.  He also held civilian titles BH, SchH1, SchH2 and SchH3.  Much more important than Drago’s performance in competition was his accomplishment on the street.  He was a fanatical drug detection dog with over 2.5 million dollars worth of illegal drug seizures.  Drago sent 30 of Salt Lake’s most dangerous criminals to the hospital for stitches before they went to jail and he did it with an overall bite ratio of less than 2%.  Drago never drew a foul in all of his work—not even one Internal Affairs complaint to the police department and no litigation.  His most accomplished deployment was later memorialized as the “Richey Technique”.  I observed a burglar breaking through the window of a business and I shut my K9 truck down in the middle of the road.  I quietly got Drago out of the truck and keyed him on the burglar.  Knowing that the burglar would quickly hop a nearby fence as soon as he realized I was there, I quietly deployed Drago.  My boy ran to the burglar for the apprehension but the second he got there, I commanded the dog lay down and guard.  The burglar spun around to see a German Shepherd at his feet and a cop yelling instructions to him.  He didn’t have time to do anything but comply!  That was the kind of dog Drago was.  He always knew what I was trying to accomplish as a cop and he knew how to be an excellent police dog.  I lost him to cancer after 13 wonderful years and more fun than any K9 handler should ever be allowed to have.

After Drago, I left K9 to work as a narcotic detective.  I didn’t make it a year before I convinced the Department to let me run a drug detection dog.  I imported a German Shepherd named Lobo.  He worked his tail off in addition to being the Narcotic Squad mascot.  One time I forgot to take him out of my undercover “narc van” before doing a hand-to-hand deal in the vehicle.  Lobo was snarling and barking at the drug dealer like any police dog would but I pulled it off by telling my soon to be arrestee that he was my personal protection dog!  You cannot be too careful in the drug business.  The bandit thought that was cool at first.

After a four year stint in narcotics, I went off to be a real detective working Burglary, Robbery and Homicide (and yes, I did pitch for a dog in each of these assignments).  I was promoted to Sergeant in 2003 and, you guessed it, I was immediately assigned to the K9 Squad.

This time I imported a dog named Oskar.  Oskar was a second-to-none drug dog and an incredible tracking dog as well.  He taught me that the shortest distance between two points was a line.  His ability to follow a trail of human scent saved me so much work that I spent most of my time on this discipline.  Unfortunately, Oskar needed to retire early due to a disease called degenerative myelopathy.  He is enjoying a comfortable retirement but would much rather be working.  I spent my next year as a Detective Sergeant over the Robbery Squad.

In October, 2007, I retired from the Salt Lake City Police Department and transferred to the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office.  My newest baby is a Bloodhound born on May 1st 2008.  His name is Oliver.  Stay tuned.  Oliver is a “tipped over” hound that is driven to follow trails of human scent.  He needs to grow up just a little but he is enjoying his “job” of using that big sniffer to find people who will love him up and give him treats.  I am confident that Oliver will continue to sniff out people, good and bad, for many years to come as a proud member of the Unified Police Department K9 Unit.