K 9

The Hampstead Police Department is about $3,000 short of the money it needs to establish a K-9 unit, officials said Friday.Police Chief R. Kenneth Meekins said the department has applied for a state grant that would cover 75 percent of the expenses associated with establishing a K-9 unit.The state grant would cover $28,722 of the $38,296 it would cost for the dog, training, veterinary care and a four-wheel-drive vehicle.To qualify for the state funding, the police department has to raise the remaining $9,574.

L. Wilson Davis Sr., a nationally recognized dog trainer who proved the value of dogs in combat and later organized and headed the Baltimore City Police Department's police dog unit, died Feb. 1 of influenza at a Kilmarnock, Va., nursing home. He was 91.Mr. Davis began his career at age 10, when he trained his fox terrier and collie to deliver newspapers to houses in the Ten Hills area of Baltimore, where he was born and raised.rTC A City College graduate who attended the Johns Hopkins University, Mr. Davis entered his father's wholesale fruit and produce business in 1926, but continued to train and breed dogs in his spare time.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Four days after splitting a doubleheader without hitting, the Orioles proved they could do the same last night without starting pitching.What might have been a nightmare ended as a break-even experience when the Orioles battered the Kansas City Royals for 15 hits in a 12-9 win before collapsing in the second game, 9-2, against Ricky Bones. There was no technical merit to the day; however, the Orioles at least put another half-game between themselves and the New York Yankees, who tumbled 5 1/2 games off the AL East lead.

Howard County police Pfc. Edward Sprinkle darted through the woods with his dog, Gable, on the trail of a suspected car thief who should have stayed on the road.On foot, the man was no match for Gable. Soon his arm was in the 6-year-old German shepherd's jaws as the dog pulled him from his hiding spot beneath a trailer in a Jessup industrial park.For such efforts, Officer Sprinkle will be honored as Police Officer of the Year at 7 o'clock tonight at the sixth annual Community Awards night of the Howard County Chamber of Commerce.

A county K-9 dog bit and subdued a Severn man who had fled a stolen van with four other men Sunday morning, county police said.Officer Lawrence O'Connor and his K-9 partner, Bubba, were called to help military police at Fort Meade about 1 a.m. The military police had chased the suspects to Buckner Avenue and Mapes Road, where they jumped out of the van, police said.Officer O'Connor and Bubba tracked the men for a third of a mile, then saw one of them trying to escape. After yelling a warning, Officer O'Connor released Bubba, who caught the suspect after a brief struggle, police said.

A man who held his hand inside his jacket as though he had a gun robbed a Laurel store Saturday night of an undisclosed amount of cash, county police said yesterday.The man walked into the Quick Start Mini Mart in the 3400 block of Fort Meade Road about 9:30 p.m., announced a holdup and demanded money from the clerk.The clerk gave him the money and the man told her he would kill her if she pushed any alarm or called police.He ran from the store in an unknown direction, police said.Western District officers using a K-9 dog searched the area unsuccessfully for the suspect, police said.

Two new hires with impressive Eastern European credentials received guaranteed lifetime contracts with the Harford County sheriff's office last week and immediately began special training assignments, Sheriff Robert E. Comes said.They are Ison and Dan, two German shepherds that are graduates of the "Schutzhund" discipline program in Europe. They were purchased for $3,500 each through a Hampstead kennel owned by Robert and Lisa Barrett."The Barretts guarantee that the 2-year-old champion purebred dogs are in excellent health, have sound hips and will work for life," said Sgt. John Cavanaugh, who directs the sheriff's K-9 Division.

An Essex roofer received a life sentence plus 35 years yesterday in the shooting of Baltimore County K-9 Officer James E. Beck on Halloween.The officer had stopped a pickup truck described in a police broadcast as being involved in an armed robbery.Mark Phillip French, 29, of the 300 block of George Ave., denies he shot the officer, who suffered permanent injuries, including the loss of most of his hearing.French, convicted last month, told Circuit Judge James T. Smith Jr., "I pray for the victim and his family and I pray for my family.

Maryland State Police are training 10 K-9 dogs and their handlers at a facility the department opened at Springfield Hospital Center about two months ago.Residents are concerned that they were not notified about the K-9 school. They also are worried about other potential uses for the hospital campus that have surfaced recently.Despite a year-old promise from the state Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to keep South Carroll residents informed of events at Springfield, residents say they learned of the K-9 school only a week ago -- from hospital employees.

Ace, a pumpkin-colored, 3-year-old German shepherd, stared mournfully through the wire door of his cage, looking very much like a lost puppy."You can see that the dog has been traumatized," said Lt. Michael P. Howe, head of the Baltimore County K-9 unit. "You can almost see the sadness in the dog's eyes."Ace's handler, Officer James E. Beck, 40, was critically wounded Oct. 31, shot three times after stopping two robbery suspects on Pulaski Highway in Rosedale.Three weeks after the shooting, Officer Beck remains in critical condition at the Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, recovering from two gunshot wounds to the chest and another to his left shoulder.