A Day in the Life Sniffing out trouble

K-9 officers focused on the dangers of police work

by Chris Trujillo

It’s a dark December night, and the near-empty Edmonds streets are half-covered with ice. While most people may be winding down, the Edmonds Police Department’s night shift has gathered in a well-lit room for its nightly briefing.

Officer Josh Hwang sits on a nearby counter. He wears the same uniform and carries the same gun as his colleagues, but he has a weapon they don’t: Ace, a 70-pound Belgian Malinois.

Hwang, a former United States Marine, has been in the K-9 unit for three of the eight years he’s been with the force. It’s a small squad. The department has just two dogs and both work the 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. shift. Hobbs, an all-black German shepherd, worked the flipside of the week before he retired in January at age 11, and will now live with his handler, Sgt. Jason Robinson.

“This is the best job in the police force,” Hwang said. “And it helps that Ace is my best friend. We go everywhere together. We go to work together, and he comes home with me at the night’s end. I can say I see him more than I see my family.”

Despite his intimidating presence, the 8-year-old Ace behaves more like a carefree puppy than an aging, soonto-be retiring K-9 police dog. Police dogs are typically on the job six to eight years, depending on the dog and its overall health.

But when he’s not chasing a ball or playing his favorite game – tugof-war – Ace must be focused on the dangerous job ahead.

Like his partner, Ace needs protection. Before the duo hit the streets, a bulletproof vest is strapped around Ace’s chest. The thick protective gear also protects him from potential knife attacks.

“It’s vital that he (Ace) is protected,” Hwang said. “On this job, you never know what can happen.”

Imported from Holland, the slender brown and yellowish working dog has trained for 400 hours and responds to German, Czech, and Dutch languages.

But his nose may be his most vital trait.

Ace can sniff out the slightest odors, such as cortisol, a hormone produced by the adrenal glands and released based on the human body’s response to stress. He also detects illegal drugs such as heroin, meth, and cocaine.

“Ace is only the second dog in Edmonds to be cross-trained,” Hwang said. “I really wanted to expand our services as a police department. We did a 200-hour class so he could recognize drug odor imprints.”

Heading out

It’s nighttime, 7:30 p.m., and Hwang and Ace head out to their marked SUV. Hwang stocks his equipment, and Ace finds a comfortable landing spot as the duo begins their night not knowing what may or may not lie ahead.

“Some nights we are responding from one call to another,” Hwang said. “And then there are nights where there’s nothing. On those nights, I usually find a place to throw the ball for Ace. I also like to try to get some training in.

“It’s important to train whenever we can. Obedience is crucial. We train on that the most. You can also become a liability if you can’t trust your dog to be obedient.”

Ten minutes into their shift, a call comes across what is usually a busy radio. On this night, it’s relatively quiet. The call is an assault. A passenger inside a car pulled a knife on the driver while the couple drove down I-5.

The driver exits the freeway and pulls into a convenience store. Once they come to a stop the passenger flees, and the driver runs to report the incident. Hwang and Ace arrived four minutes after they received the call. It’s a call that the partners are prepared for. They have trained for it every night: a chase.

“Teaching our dogs to follow human order is our primary function,” Hwang said. “Part of the training when we get to the location is finding the freshest scent left behind. We call that ‘enhanced odor.’”

Fortunately, the driver was not stabbed. Scared, for sure, but she couldn’t provide enough information that Hwang and Ace needed to pursue the assailant.

“She didn’t want us to go after him,” Hwang said. “That happens a lot. But if she did want us to find him, we would have gone to where he was seen last. There are lots of theories on how dogs detect odors, but the primary theory is that humans produce an odor and, if we’re fast enough, we have a good chance of chasing him down.”

Despite the woman’s refusal to track down the passenger, Hwang and Ace drove near the shadowy areas where a suspect could hide. Despite a stadium of lights beaming from the well-equipped police SUV, there would be no chase.

“Suspects can go anywhere and think they got away with something,” Hwang said. “But Ace will find them. He often does. That’s what he does.”

Highly effective resource

Unlike the regular beat cop who patrols specific areas, Hwang and Ace respond to calls from everywhere in Edmonds and surrounding areas – Lynnwood, Mountlake Terrace, Mukilteo, and Shoreline. A K-9 unit, which many cities utilize, is a highly effective resource.

Mukilteo is an exception in its lack of a police dog. Instead, it requests help from Edmonds and other neighboring agencies if needed, said Nathan Fabia, Mukilteo’s crime prevention officer.

Mill Creek established its K-9 unit in 2012. Cpl. Nathan Lerma and K-9 Bagira were required to complete a 400-hour training course as well as certify yearly per the standards of the Washington State Police Canine Association.

They were certified for obedience, tracking, and apprehending suspects in fall 2017. After additional training, Lerma and Bagira were certified in June 2018 as a narcotic detection team, attaining 100% proficiency in the detection of cocaine, heroin, and meth, said Mill Creek Police Sgt. Ian Durkee. This exhaustive level of constant training is required in order to develop a proficient, productive, and effective canine team.

Bagira is now retired. Lerma’s new K-9 partner is “Hondo.”

Hondo’s already showed off his skills. One day, he was on duty as the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office conducted an evidence search after a suspect in police custody ditched a handgun during a domestic violence crime. Hondo unearthed the handgun, hidden deep behind a tire in a wheel well of a vehicle.

Deputies say the gun was hidden so well it probably would not have been found without Hondo’s help. Police dogs have a sense of smell 100 times or greater than humans.

The Snohomish County Sheriff’s Department has two K-9 officers, Dico and Riggs, handled by Deputies Ryan Phillips and Zach Byrd.

A new day beckons

As the December night goes on, the canine duo patrols most of Edmonds. Perhaps the cold weather is to thank for the peaceful shift. Ordinarily, a slow night gives Hwang time to do paperwork or train Ace on a nearby field.

Before he knows it, Hwang, one of the few officers allowed to drive his SUV home, is done for the night. He’s just in time to prepare breakfast for his two daughters before sending them off to school.

Then it’s off to bed for the crimefighters.

Ace makes his way to his comfy bed downstairs. As for Hwang, he draws the drapes closed, dons his earplugs, and lowers his sleep mask. It won’t be long before the two hit the streets again.

There is one thing for sure: The new day will hold something different for both human officers and their best friends.

RUN TO WIN : Inspiring youth sports with Christianity

More than 30 years ago, Mike Rohrbach dedicated his life to something bigger than himself.

After leading the University of Washington football team in the 1978 Rose Bowl, Rohrbach and his wife Karen founded Run To Win – a faithbased ministry outreach program that serves youth in the Puget Sound area.

Run To Win (RTW), based in Edmonds, was created to provide a safe community where sports inspire people to follow Christ. To do so, RTW offers spring and summer day camps for kids ages 5-12. Kids can choose from camps divided into various sports, such as flag football, basketball, and soccer. Run To Win offers a multisport camp for those who want to experience more than one activity.

“We are a youth sports camp that emphasizes Christianity,” Executive Director Caitlyn Rohrbach Houvener said, “We offer several specific sports that our kids can experience. But if someone doesn’t like or would prefer to participate in multiple sports, we have a multisport program. It allows the kids to experience a variety, not just one.”

Aside from sports, Run To Win includes faith-based games. Faith and love for Jesus through sports is its main priority, she said. At the end of every camp, the coaches bring together the kids for “The Four Quarters of Faith.”

Her job is to ensure that Run To Win maintains the strong impact it has had on the community’s youth, an achievement it’s had since 1991, and by the looks of it, she’s the right person to see it through.

“There’s nothing more important than faith and community,” she said. “And that’s what drives our commitment. Adding sports to it really ties what we are doing together.”

Houvener said faith has kept RTW successful for the past three decades. It’s also the critical proponent in which a community prospers. And that couldn’t be clearer.

The ministry’s “scholarship” program makes it nearly impossible to turn anyone away. RTW can offer full and partial scholarships with the money it receives, thanks to the overwhelming generosity of its donors. Last year at its annual dinner auction, Run To Win raised nearly $500,000.

“It’s incredible, and it just proves that people are genuinely good,” Houvener said. “We are so fortunate to have great donors. Our main priority is to share the love and help as many kids as we can with the help of Jesus through sports.”

Run To Win is holding its next dinner auction at 5 p.m., Saturday, May 20, at the Lynnwood Convention Center. It will conclude summer with its annual golf tournament at 11 a.m. Monday, Sept. 18.