Canine Services Unit

from 2016 Annual Report - Williston Police Department

Northwest Narcotics Task Force

K-9 Molly

Dear Williston City Commission, Chief Lokken and Captain Peterson,

I am happy to present to you the Year End Report for the Williston Police Canine Services Unit for 2016. I would like to thank the City of Williston along with the City Commission, Chief Lokken and Captain Peterson for their continued support of the Williston Police Canine Services Unit.

Molly and I completed re-certifications with two certifying associations this year. We certified in February with the United States Police Canine Association (USPCA) in Fargo. We also obtained National Police Canine Association (NPCA) certification which was held in Dickinson in June. These certifications are recognized by state and federal courts and show the courts that the training we attend and implement is up to date and that the certifying associations agree that our skills are up to or surpass national standards.

The Williston Police Canine Services Unit offers our services to area law enforcement agencies as well as area businesses. We have been called upon several times by surrounding communities to assist with narcotic related investigations. We continue to work very closely with other area canine teams during multiagency investigations as well as in training.

The schools in the area have continued to utilize our services. We conducted several school searches again this year. We appreciate the great working relationship we have with our local schools and recognize their hard work in keeping our schools a safe learning environment. With the implementation of an additional SRO in the Williston School District, the Canine Unit has been able to assist even more frequently with narcotic related investigations within the local schools. We have been able to visit our local elementary schools where the students have been able to meet Molly and learn about law enforcement while meeting several different Officers. We have conducted talks and demonstrations for high schools and even assisted with instruction at Williston State College.

In 2016, the Williston Police Canine Services Unit saw number fluctuations that mimicked the trends seen within the other divisions of the department. In 2016, the Canine Unit assisted in generating $930,500.00. This total includes all citations and arrests over the course of the year. We were also successful in removing $180,440.00 “Street Value” of narcotics from the streets of the community.