BOSTON — The Legislature sent Gov. Charlie Baker a bill Monday morning allowing emergency medical personnel to treat and transport police dogs who are injured in the line of duty.
The measure stems from the 2018 line-of-duty death of Yarmouth Police Sergeant Sean Gannon, whose K9 law enforcement partner, Nero, was shot the same day that Gannon was killed. Medical personnel could not treat the police dog or transport it to a veterinary hospital because of policies that prohibited them from administering first aid or transport to animals.
Rep. Steven Xiarhos (R-Barnstable), who was deputy police chief in Yarmouth at the time Gannon was killed, previously told the News Service a retired K9 officer had to transport Nero to a nearby animal hospital. Xiarhos said he was at the hospital six days after Nero was injured when “this skinny dog, who hadn’t really eaten in six days, scars head to chest, came walking out.”
“We had Sean’s cruiser brought to the hospital because we were going to use Sean’s cruiser to take Nero home. And I was standing there and I saw Nero looking for Sean and I’ll never forget that sight,” Xiarhos said. “When we put him in the backseat, he was licking Sean’s seat. So I’ll never forget those days and that’s what motivates people to fix things and make things right.”
Emergency treatment allowed under the bill includes CPR, administration of life-saving interventions like naloxone, and basic first aid. The measure requires emergency medical personnel to first treat and transport people before turning their attention to injured law enforcement dogs.
A similar bill was filed in 2019 by former Rep. Will Crocker.
Baker has 10 days to sign the bill, veto it, or return it with an amendment.
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