Dallas County officials unsure sheriff's canines worth the cost

12:32 PM CST on Sunday, November 23, 2008
By KEVIN KRAUSE / The Dallas Morning News
kkrause@dallasnews.com

Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez's purchase this year of two drug-sniffing dogs has sparked concerns among county commissioners that the dogs may be more trouble than they're worth.

The department used $173,000 in federal drug forfeiture money to set up the new drug interdiction unit, which consists of two patrol deputies and a pair of specially trained German shepherds.

Commissioners have questions about the deputies' work weeks and how much time is enough to compensate them for grooming, feeding and exercising the dogs. They have asked the district attorney's civil division to research case law on the matter.

"We may even challenge the appropriateness of having these dogs," said Allen Clemson, the county's top administrator.

For the past two years, commissioners have rejected the sheriff's efforts to revive a defunct drug unit. Their concerns now center on liabilities arising out of a federal labor lawsuit filed in June by a canine officer against the county.

In the suit, Matthew Rollins, a deputy constable, is seeking overtime he says he is owed for caring for Zeus, his police dog, at his home for five years while he was the dog's caretaker. He is accusing the county of violating the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, which governs overtime pay. He is seeking more than $157,000 in damages.

The U.S. Labor Department has ruled multiple times since 1985 that police officers must be compensated for caring for police dogs if the extra work exceeds the normal 40-hour work week.

Successful lawsuits have been filed by canine officers across the country over the years. Most police agencies with canine units, including Dallas police, allow the handlers to leave work one hour earlier each day to compensate them for caring for the dogs.

Commissioners have questioned Deputy Rollins' continued use of Zeus on the job.

He resigned from Constable Mike Gothard's precinct in January after the dissolution of Mr. Gothard's 5-year-old canine unit in November 2007 because of what the constable termed procedural and training issues. Mr. Gothard declined to elaborate because of the pending lawsuit.

Deputy Rollins then bought Zeus from a deputy constables association for $1. He was hired in early 2008 by Constable Ben Adamcik, who said he does not have a canine unit.

Deputy Rollins, however, still uses Zeus occasionally for police work such as serving warrants, Mr. Adamcik said.

"He has a dog, but it belongs to him personally," Mr. Adamcik said. "We assume no liabilities for him. It's like a piece of equipment."

But commissioners, who are fighting the lawsuit, are uncomfortable with that arrangement and want to know what the legal risks are. They also want to know what liability, if any, the sheriff's dogs pose.

Sheriff's deputies in the drug interdiction unit have undergone six months of training with their dogs - Daffy and Diuk (pronounced "Duke") - which live with them. The duos have contributed to several drug busts during traffic stops, a sheriff's spokeswoman said.

But the county has not authorized any canine officer positions and has no policies or procedures that address animals, Mr. Clemson said. The dogs, he said, could bite someone's child.

Commissioners John Wiley Price and Kenneth Mayfield say they would rather not have the dogs if they are going to cost the county money.

"We've got to make some decisions. I would just as soon all the canine units go away, if you're going to have difficulty," Mr. Price said.

Mr. Mayfield questioned how the sheriff can use the dogs without approval from the Commissioners Court.

"We fund the positions," he said. "The sheriff may have to lose her dogs."

Assistant Chief Deputy Joe Costa said the dogs are trained to "search and find" and are not aggressive dogs that will bite unprovoked. He said that numerous policies and procedures are in place and that the dogs will not cost taxpayers a penny.

Deputies Scott Evans and Terry Trout are working 10-hour shifts, four days a week, he said. They have roughly an hour set aside each day during their shifts to care for the dogs, he said.

Chief Costa, who wants to eventually expand the drug unit, said he realizes he must try to win over the commissioners with successful drug busts.

He hopes that the dogs can generate enough drug forfeitures to help fund the unit and that commissioners will eventually chip in some money.

But a lack of forfeitures was what led commissioners to eliminate funding for the department's 11-member drug unit in 2002. That unit was formed under former Sheriff Jim Bowles in 1989.

"Right now we've got to prove ourselves," Chief Costa said.

Deputy Evans, who is also president of the Dallas County Sheriff's Association, said the commissioners should have funded the unit.

"It's a joke that we had to get it the way we did," he said. "These dogs are a needed tool. We need more of them."

Terry Fleck, a canine legality expert and retired canine deputy from California, said the accepted standard is about 30 minutes per day to care for a dog. That includes bathing, brushing, exercising, feeding, grooming, administering medications and taking the dog to the vet, he said.

Mr. Fleck, who trains police agencies on the use of police dogs, said most departments build that time into the work week without any trouble. Dallas County's concerns, he said, are misplaced.

"They're overreacting. Shame on them," he said.