Advertisement Woman hospitalized after bite from Boone Co. Sheriff's Dept. K-9 Sales associate suffers injury to ear Share Shares Copy Link Copy

A female sales associate at a Tire Discounters was taken to the hospital after she was bitten by a Boone County Sheriff’s Department K-9, officials confirmed to WLWT News 5.According to the Boone County Sheriff’s Department, Deputy Greg Tanner was on patrol with K-9 partner, Enzo, on Tuesday around 5:15 p.m. when he noticed a low tire pressure indicator warning on his cruiser.Watch this storyDispatch advised the deputy to go to a Tire Discounters to get the tire serviced, officials said.The deputy parked his cruiser in the stall, as instructed by the sales associate, and the deputy removed the dog from the cruiser on a 4-foot lead, officials said.Boone County Sheriff Tom Scheben said when the woman walked within proximity of the leash, the dog bit her."The deputy is oblivious to her. The dog is not oblivious to her, and he does exactly what he was trained to do. And he's protecting that deputy and he turns around and bites her," Scheben said.The woman, identified as Felicia Broach, 28, suffered an injury to her ear and was taken to UC Medical Center for treatment, Scheben said."She was missing about a third of her ear on the right side," Broach's fiance said. "The trip in the ambulance plus all the trauma was tough for her. She's worn out. She's very upset.”The department is investigating the incident. Schaben said the deputy could face disciplinary action if it's shown he didn't properly restrain the 2-year-old K-9.Tanner told investigators that his dog wouldn't stop barking, so he took him out of the cruiser."He had his back turned to her and then the dog basically came running toward her, jumped up with its paws, put its paws on her chest and bit her ear," Broach's fiance said.Scheben said this was the first incident involving Enzo. A leash is Enzo's cue that police work needs to be done, he said."He was on the lead and he knew what to do," Scheben said.As for the resulting injury, Scheben said the department's insurance will take care of it."We want to make her whole, if you will. Take care of any injuries with her totally," Scheben said.Broach's fiance said doctors are estimating a year of recovery time. She has retained a lawyer, who said there are currently no plans to file suit.Tanner is still on the job, but Enzo was taken off patrol.Tire Discounters released a statement that read, "The entire Tire Discounters family is keeping our employee in our thoughts as she recovers. We are saddened she had to go through this yesterday. She is taking the time she needs to rest and we are hopeful she will have a quick recovery. Our first priority is the health and safety of all employees. That’s why we are continuing to work with everyone involved to better understand what happened."