A really courageous police canine, who rushed into motion to avoid wasting his handler at the price of his personal life, could have a second life in bronze outdoors the Braintree Police Department.
The monument was unveiled Thursday throughout a ceremony by which the division additionally rededicated its Officers Memorial.
“I think that we need to thank all the police officers that serve every day, day in, day out, when people are home in their beds. They serve all night long. They’re serving on weekends, holidays,” Braintree Police Chief Timothy Cohoon stated through the ceremony. “We’re going to thank today a beloved police dog who if not for Kitt, it could have been a dramatically different day on June 4th, 2021.”
That’s the day the Ok-9 named Kitt, who based on the division had served for 12 years, was shot useless by a suspect of home violence. Her handler, Officer Bill Cushing in addition to one other officer, Richard Seibert, have been additionally shot by the suspect, Andrew Homan, earlier than a 3rd officer, Matthew Donoghue, was in a position to take Homan out.
That officer was cleared in a Norfolk DA investigation into the taking pictures. The investigative abstract offered particulars of the tragic day:
Police had acquired a name at round 12:45 p.m. that day by the home violence sufferer, who informed arriving officers that she had been subjected to bodily and verbal assaults over a 24-hour interval and that Homan had even pointed certainly one of his pistols at her the day earlier than. Surveillance footage confirmed police Homan had run off into the abutting woods previous to their arrival and so the three officers and Kitt set off on his path.
Kitt had situated Homan’s scent and so they quickly discovered the armed man, who based on the DA didn’t obey instructions to place his weapons down however as a substitute fired, injuring Cushing and ending Kitt’s life.
The division that night would write a brief memorial to Kitt that night time: “We will forever miss you buddy.”
Cushing, Donoghue and Seibert have been awarded the Medal of Honor through the Trooper George L. Hanna Memorial Award for Bravery ceremony held final November for his or her actions that night time.
“Send special blessings upon those unique officers who are partnered with their K-9 officers. Those K-9s are not only partners with these officers but … come into their homes, they’re part of their family,” Father Sean Connor of Braintree’s Our Lady Queen of Peace stated through the convocation. “Our nation, our world is suffering from a lack of peace. So send your blessing on these peace officers, watch over the work they do and help us to support them, not only in word but in deed.”
Source: www.bostonherald.com”