K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page

(K-9 section 01/01/2024 – 03/31/2024)
These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of March 31, 2024 there have been Five (5) K-9 line of duty deaths.

MARCH 2024

FEBRUARY 2024

JANUARY 2024

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2023

(K-9 section 01/01/2023 – 12/31/2023)
These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2023 there have been Twenty-Five (25) K-9 line of duty deaths. There was Zero (0) K-9 Officer killed in the State of Washington in 2023.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2022

(K-9 section 01/01/2022 – 12/31/2022)
These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2022 there have been Twenty-Five (25) K-9 line of duty deaths. There was One (1) K-9 Officer killed in the State of Washington in 2022.

K9 Jedi

Seattle Police Department, Washington

End of Watch Wednesday, January 5, 2022

K9 Jedi was stabbed to death while attempting an apprehension of a burglary suspect in the 2200 block of South Eddy Street at about 2:45 pm.

A resident in the home called 911 to report a subject armed with a machete was attempting to break in. Responding units encountered the subject who then fled on foot. Officers pursued him to the 6700 block of Swift Avenue South where K9 Jedi was released to perform an apprehension. The man fatally stabbed K9 Jedi during the apprehension and then stabbed an officer in the face before being shot and killed.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2021

(K-9 section 01/01/2021 – 12/31/2021)
These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2021 there have been Twenty-one (21) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2020

(K-9 section 01/01/2020 – 12/31/2020)
These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2020 there have been Twenty-One (21) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K9 Ronja
Tacoma Police Department, Washington
End of Watch Thursday, August 13, 2020

K9 Ronja was shot and killed while tracking a murder suspect in the 3600 block of South M Street at about 1:30 am.

Another officer had spotted the man in a vehicle and recognized him as being wanted in connection to a murder that had occurred the previous night. The subject led officers on a vehicle pursuit until crashing and bailing out on foot. K9 Ronja and her handler arrived at the scene and began a track for the subject. The man opened fire on officers when he was located in the 3600 block of M Street and struck K9 Ronja.

One of the officers on scene returned fire and wounded the subject, who was taken into custody.

K9 Ronja was taken to a veterinary hospital where she died later in the morning.

K9 Ronja had served with the Tacoma Police Department for only eight months.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2019

(K-9 section 01/01/2019 – 12/31/2019)
These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2019 there have been Twenty-Eight (28) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2018

(K-9 section 01/01/2018 – 12/31/2018)
These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2018 there have been Twenty-Seven (27) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2017

(K-9 section 01/01/2017 – 12/31/2017)
These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2017 there have been twenty-four (24) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2016

(K-9 section 01/01/2016 – 12/31/2016) These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2016 there have been thirty-four (34) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K9 Reefer, 2006-2016
Chelan County Sheriff’s Office, Washington

K9 Reefer was struck and killed by a vehicle while on duty.

Reefer had served with the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office for nine years and served as a narcotics dog.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2015

(K-9 section 01/01/2015 – 12/31/2015) These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2015 there have been twenty-six (26) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K9 Ike, 2009-2015
Vancouver Police Department, Washington

K9 Ike suffered fatal stab wounds during an apprehension in the area of Fruit Valley Road and Laframbois Road at approximately 6:00 pm.

Officers were investigating a suspicious person call in the area when they encountered a subject wanted on multiple warrants. The subject resisted arrested and Ike was released for an apprehension. The subject stabbed Ike multiple times in the chest, head, and neck before being taken into custody.

Ike was transported to DoveLewis Emergency Animal Hospital where he underwent emergency surgery. His wounds were too extensive and he had to be euthanized early the next morning.

K9 Ike had served with the Vancouver Police Department for three years.

K9 Jimmy, 2013-2015
King County Sheriff’s Office, Washington

K9 Jimmy was struck and killed by a tractor trailer on State Route 99, in Tukwila.

His handler was conducting off-leash exercises with Jimmy in Cecil Moses Memorial Park during their shift at approximately 1:00 am. Jimmy was able to get through a break in a chain link fence and ran onto the roadway, where he was struck.

Jimmy had served with the King County Sheriff’s Office for six months. He certified March 27th, 2015, had secured his first capture within 50 hours of certification.

K9 Barney, 2004-2015
Tacoma Police Department, Washington

K9 Barney died after inadvertently ingesting methamphetamine conducting a narcotics search as part of a search warrant at a storage unit in Puyallup.

Barney located unwrapped, powdered methamphetamine and ingested it after putting his nose on the substance. He was rushed to an emergency vet hospital where he remained until passing away the following night.

Three subjects were arrested and charged in connection with the narcotics trafficking case, which resulted in a seizure of 44 pounds of methamphetamine from the storage unit.

K9 Barney had served with the Tacoma Police Department for nine years.

Buddy 2006-2014
Lynnwood Police Department, Washington

Former Lynnwood Police K-9 “Buddy” passed away on Saturday, May 24, 2014, after a long fight against cancer.

K-9 Buddy worked for the Lynnwood police department from 2006-2014 where he was partnered with Sergeant Cole Langdon. K-9 Buddy was a dual-purpose dog trained to locate hidden criminal suspects and missing persons and to sniff out illegal drugs. During his career K-9 Buddy was responsible for over 200 captures of criminals and hundreds of narcotic finds.

In May 2010 Sergeant Langdon and K-9 Buddy were recognized as the State of Washington Veterans of Foreign Wars “Officer of the Year.” In June 2010 K-9 Buddy and Sergeant Langdon were recognized by KCPQ TV’s “Washington Most Wanted” as their “Officer of the Month.” K-9 Buddy and Sergeant Langdon also received numerous departmental citations and awards. On numerous occasions, K-9 Buddy conducted searches in the King and Snohomish County areas.

K-9 Buddy retired in February 2014 and lived out his final months as a valued member of Sergeant Langdon’s family.

Officer Down Memorial Page
(K-9 section 01/2014 – 12/2014)

These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2014 there have been 20 K-9 line of duty deaths in 2014.

Vader 2007-2013
Lynnwood Police Department, Washington

It is with profound sadness that we inform you that Lynnwood Police has lost a member of its family. Lynnwood Police Canine Officer “Vader” passed away recently after a sudden, major medical emergency.

Vader worked hard tracking bad guys and recovering evidence right up until the very end. He was 7 years-old. Vader leaves behind his devoted handler, Officer Curtis Zatylny, and Zatylny’s wife and children.

“It may sound odd, but to me Vader was more than a dog. He was the eyes in the back of my head, my ‘Spidey-sense’, my guardian,” Zatylny said. Vader caught a lot of bad people who would have otherwise goten away with their crimes. During his tenure Vader had nearly 150 captures together with 36 evidence finds. In addition to being a master-level tracking dog, Vader and Officer Zatylny were also a cross-trained K9 team which located narcotics in Lynnwood and all over the Snohomish County region. Vader’s stats show he traced illegal drugs 25 times out of 30 and over the years has located a total of $63,858.00 in cash.

Lynnwood Police Chief Steve Jensen said Vader touched everyone at the Lynnwood Police Department and will be sorely missed. “Officer Zatylny and his canine partner, Vader, together apprehended a great many criminal suspects and enhanced the safety of the public and our officers,” Jensen said.

Sgt. David Byrd, the supervisor of the department’s K9 Unit, said Vader had an excellent reputation throughout the Police-K9 community and was unique in how social he was with the public of all ages.

Zatylny said the City of Lynnwood and Snohomish County have lost a great 4-legged officer. “He was a great partner, he loved my family, and he was a good friend… I will never forget him.”

Vader was part of the Lynnwood Police Department’s four-team K9 Unit. The Unit plans to refill this integral position. The other three team members of our K9 unit are: “Buddy” whose partner is Officer Cole Langdon, “Eli” whose partner is Officer Jake Shorthill and “Zando” whose partner is Officer Joe Dickinson.

Kane ????-2011
Clark County Sheriff’s Department, Washington

K9 Kane was stabbed to death during an arrest of two subjects who had been driving in a car with stolen license plates in the area of Northeast 76th Street and 117th Avenue.

The subjects fled during a traffic stop, and K9 Kane was released on them. He had bitten one of the subjects and was stabbed, then bit him again before being stabbed a second time. He was rushed to an animal hospital where he died.

Both subjects were arrested and charged in connection with the incident.

K9 Kane had served with the Clark County Sheriff’s Department for six years.

“No Greater Duty, No Greater Honor”

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page

(K-9 section 01/01/2020 – 12/31/2020)
These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2020 there have been Twenty-One (21) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K9 Ronja
Tacoma Police Department, Washington
End of Watch Thursday, August 13, 2020

K9 Ronja was shot and killed while tracking a murder suspect in the 3600 block of South M Street at about 1:30 am.

Another officer had spotted the man in a vehicle and recognized him as being wanted in connection to a murder that had occurred the previous night. The subject led officers on a vehicle pursuit until crashing and bailing out on foot. K9 Ronja and her handler arrived at the scene and began a track for the subject. The man opened fire on officers when he was located in the 3600 block of M Street and struck K9 Ronja.

One of the officers on scene returned fire and wounded the subject, who was taken into custody.

K9 Ronja was taken to a veterinary hospital where she died later in the morning.

K9 Ronja had served with the Tacoma Police Department for only eight months.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2019

(K-9 section 01/01/2019 – 12/31/2019)
These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2019 there have been Twenty-Eight (28) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2018

(K-9 section 01/01/2018 – 12/31/2018)
These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2018 there have been Twenty-Seven (27) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2017

(K-9 section 01/01/2017 – 12/31/2017)
These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2017 there have been twenty-four (24) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2016

(K-9 section 01/01/2016 – 12/31/2016) These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2016 there have been thirty-four (34) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K9 Reefer, 2006-2016
Chelan County Sheriff’s Office, Washington

K9 Reefer was struck and killed by a vehicle while on duty.

Reefer had served with the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office for nine years and served as a narcotics dog.

K-9 Officer Down Memorial Page for 2015

(K-9 section 01/01/2015 – 12/31/2015) These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2015 there have been twenty-six (26) K-9 line of duty deaths.

K9 Ike, 2009-2015
Vancouver Police Department, Washington

K9 Ike suffered fatal stab wounds during an apprehension in the area of Fruit Valley Road and Laframbois Road at approximately 6:00 pm.

Officers were investigating a suspicious person call in the area when they encountered a subject wanted on multiple warrants. The subject resisted arrested and Ike was released for an apprehension. The subject stabbed Ike multiple times in the chest, head, and neck before being taken into custody.

Ike was transported to DoveLewis Emergency Animal Hospital where he underwent emergency surgery. His wounds were too extensive and he had to be euthanized early the next morning.

K9 Ike had served with the Vancouver Police Department for three years.

K9 Jimmy, 2013-2015
King County Sheriff’s Office, Washington

K9 Jimmy was struck and killed by a tractor trailer on State Route 99, in Tukwila.

His handler was conducting off-leash exercises with Jimmy in Cecil Moses Memorial Park during their shift at approximately 1:00 am. Jimmy was able to get through a break in a chain link fence and ran onto the roadway, where he was struck.

Jimmy had served with the King County Sheriff’s Office for six months. He certified March 27th, 2015, had secured his first capture within 50 hours of certification.

K9 Barney, 2004-2015
Tacoma Police Department, Washington

K9 Barney died after inadvertently ingesting methamphetamine conducting a narcotics search as part of a search warrant at a storage unit in Puyallup.

Barney located unwrapped, powdered methamphetamine and ingested it after putting his nose on the substance. He was rushed to an emergency vet hospital where he remained until passing away the following night.

Three subjects were arrested and charged in connection with the narcotics trafficking case, which resulted in a seizure of 44 pounds of methamphetamine from the storage unit.

K9 Barney had served with the Tacoma Police Department for nine years.

Buddy 2006-2014
Lynnwood Police Department, Washington

Former Lynnwood Police K-9 “Buddy” passed away on Saturday, May 24, 2014, after a long fight against cancer.

K-9 Buddy worked for the Lynnwood police department from 2006-2014 where he was partnered with Sergeant Cole Langdon. K-9 Buddy was a dual-purpose dog trained to locate hidden criminal suspects and missing persons and to sniff out illegal drugs. During his career K-9 Buddy was responsible for over 200 captures of criminals and hundreds of narcotic finds.

In May 2010 Sergeant Langdon and K-9 Buddy were recognized as the State of Washington Veterans of Foreign Wars “Officer of the Year.” In June 2010 K-9 Buddy and Sergeant Langdon were recognized by KCPQ TV’s “Washington Most Wanted” as their “Officer of the Month.” K-9 Buddy and Sergeant Langdon also received numerous departmental citations and awards. On numerous occasions, K-9 Buddy conducted searches in the King and Snohomish County areas.

K-9 Buddy retired in February 2014 and lived out his final months as a valued member of Sergeant Langdon’s family.

Officer Down Memorial Page
(K-9 section 01/2014 – 12/2014)

These K-9 Officers were killed in the line of duty.   As of December 31, 2014 there have been 20 K-9 line of duty deaths in 2014.

Vader 2007-2013
Lynnwood Police Department, Washington

It is with profound sadness that we inform you that Lynnwood Police has lost a member of its family. Lynnwood Police Canine Officer “Vader” passed away recently after a sudden, major medical emergency.

Vader worked hard tracking bad guys and recovering evidence right up until the very end. He was 7 years-old. Vader leaves behind his devoted handler, Officer Curtis Zatylny, and Zatylny’s wife and children.

“It may sound odd, but to me Vader was more than a dog. He was the eyes in the back of my head, my ‘Spidey-sense’, my guardian,” Zatylny said. Vader caught a lot of bad people who would have otherwise goten away with their crimes. During his tenure Vader had nearly 150 captures together with 36 evidence finds. In addition to being a master-level tracking dog, Vader and Officer Zatylny were also a cross-trained K9 team which located narcotics in Lynnwood and all over the Snohomish County region. Vader’s stats show he traced illegal drugs 25 times out of 30 and over the years has located a total of $63,858.00 in cash.

Lynnwood Police Chief Steve Jensen said Vader touched everyone at the Lynnwood Police Department and will be sorely missed. “Officer Zatylny and his canine partner, Vader, together apprehended a great many criminal suspects and enhanced the safety of the public and our officers,” Jensen said.

Sgt. David Byrd, the supervisor of the department’s K9 Unit, said Vader had an excellent reputation throughout the Police-K9 community and was unique in how social he was with the public of all ages.

Zatylny said the City of Lynnwood and Snohomish County have lost a great 4-legged officer. “He was a great partner, he loved my family, and he was a good friend… I will never forget him.”

Vader was part of the Lynnwood Police Department’s four-team K9 Unit. The Unit plans to refill this integral position. The other three team members of our K9 unit are: “Buddy” whose partner is Officer Cole Langdon, “Eli” whose partner is Officer Jake Shorthill and “Zando” whose partner is Officer Joe Dickinson.

Kane ????-2011
Clark County Sheriff’s Department, Washington

K9 Kane was stabbed to death during an arrest of two subjects who had been driving in a car with stolen license plates in the area of Northeast 76th Street and 117th Avenue.

The subjects fled during a traffic stop, and K9 Kane was released on them. He had bitten one of the subjects and was stabbed, then bit him again before being stabbed a second time. He was rushed to an animal hospital where he died.

Both subjects were arrested and charged in connection with the incident.

K9 Kane had served with the Clark County Sheriff’s Department for six years.

“No Greater Duty, No Greater Honor”