St. Paul police officials have restricted when dogs can be used to physically apprehend a suspect, limiting it now to the most serious cases.

The revised policy specifies that police dogs can be used to catch someone who is fleeing and suspected of murder, manslaughter, aggravated robbery, kidnapping, criminal sexual conduct or drive-by shooting. It lists other types of felonies in which dogs cannot be used, except in certain circumstances.

The policy changes, which were mostly instituted in April, come on the heels of two high-profile dog bite cases in St. Paul.

In April 2017, the city approved a record $2 million to Frank Baker after he was mistaken for a suspect who police were seeking, and was bitten by a police dog and kicked by an officer. He was hospitalized for two weeks due to his injuries.

In September, Desiree Collins was taking her garbage out when she was attacked by a police dog looking for a male burglary suspect, according to a federal lawsuit that is ongoing. Beyond seeking financial damages, Collins’ lawsuit requested an order mandating changes to St. Paul police policy and training “in the use of effective warnings” and “proper leash techniques” to control dogs.

Sgt. Mike Ernster, a St. Paul police spokesman, said both the Baker and Collins’ cases “were major events for our department, but all K-9 apprehensions are reviewed by our command staff as they occur and this review looks at our policy and practice. When we note an issue, we review and adjust our policies to match our values and principles.” The policy was last revised in 2011.

Mayor Melvin Carter talked about revising police use-of-force policies at his inaugural speech in January, which Police Chief Todd Axtell said fit into work that had already been underway. Since Axtell became chief two years ago, there have been ongoing conversations about policies and about 100 policy updates, Ernster said.

The police department held community meetings and released its revised use-of-force policy in March. The K-9 policy is a separate document.

“While canines are a valuable part of our public safety toolbox, history has shown the importance of deploying them only with the highest standards of accountability, transparency, and respect for the communities they serve,” Carter said in a statement. “I appreciate the changes Chief Axtell has made to department policy to ensure we learn from, and never repeat the lessons of our country’s painful past.”

POLICY CHANGE WILL MEAN K-9s BITING SUSPECTS LESS OFTEN

The policy restrictions will mean police dogs are biting suspects less often while taking them into custody, Ernster said.

“The significant changes are to ensure that we are keeping our community and officers safe while only using K-9s to physically apprehend people when absolutely necessary,” he said.

The previous policy said St. Paul police dogs were primarily to be used to help find and apprehend suspects involved in serious or dangerous felonies, if that person posed “an immediate threat to the safety of officers,” or the person was actively resisting arrest or fleeing.

The revised policy prohibits the use of a police dog for physically apprehending someone solely because they are a suspect in the following type of felonies — auto theft, theft, fleeing in a motor vehicle, drug sales, sex trafficking, arson, burglary of a vacant building, or any felony when the suspect’s identity is known “if there is a reasonable likelihood that the person can be found later,” the policy says.

It says officers can use a dog to apprehend someone “who is displaying by their behavior the perceived intent to harm the officer, or another person … or whose actions are likely to result in death or serious bodily harm to the officer, or another.”

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‘Suspicious’ fire in Brooklyn Center destroys home’s garage, large Trump election sign David Ferland, executive director of the United States Police Canine Association, said K-9 policies vary around the country.

“Agencies such as St. Paul seem to go a step beyond the minimum standards of the law,” Ferland said. “I think that’s because the community wants the agency to adapt that way, they’re responding to it and I really applaud them.”

But there are trade-offs with a more restrictive policy — it could mean police are “not able to catch as many bad guys,” Ferland said.

LAWSUIT BROUGHT BY BYSTANDER WHO WAS BIT CONTINUES

Bob Bennett, an attorney who represented Baker and now Collins, noted the new policy mandates dog handlers to announce their presence throughout a search. The previous policy only said officers “shall repeat” their announcement in large or multi-level buildings.

In Collins’ case, officer Thaddeus Schmidt gave two K-9 warnings before putting his dog Gabe on a 20-foot leash, but he did not give additional warnings during his seven-minute search, according to a filing in the lawsuit. Collins was more than a block away and inside when Schmidt gave the warnings.

When Gabe “alerted” to finding a person, Schmidt did not shorten the lead or provide a warning and allowed the dog to proceed out of view around the Dumpster, Collins’ attorneys wrote Thursday in asking a judge to rule on the case.

Gabe bit Collins’ leg, knocked her to the ground and clamped down on her arm — the dog would not let go and it took more than 30 seconds to remove him, according to the filing.

Though Schmidt and Gabe “completed extensive training together” and placed 13th overall in national dog trials in 2016, “Schmidt knew that Gabe did not always respond to verbal commands, and he could not completely trust the dog,” Collins’ attorneys wrote in the filing. Gabe bit a homeless man near a bus shelter in 2016 and Schmidt was disciplined for “exhibiting poor control over his canine partner,” the filing continued.

The police department gave Schmidt a one-day suspension in the Collins case. The officer transferred back to patrol and Gabe was retired from police work, according to the filing.

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St. Paul schools superintendent gets high marks, but board wants progress on equity, enrollment, student achievement Attorneys for St. Paul, who filed a motion Thursday and asked a judge to dismiss the lawsuit, referred to the case as an “unfortunate accident.” Schmidt’s actions did not violate a constitutional right, according to the city’s filing.

The St. Paul city attorney’s office said Schmidt gave the required K-9 warnings before deploying the dog, did not give any command for Gabe to bite Collins, nor did he know the dog bit Collins until after it occurred.