Mosbrucker wins House approval to certify K9s in fentanyl detection
By Dan Thesman on Friday, February 2nd, 2024 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
OLYMPIA – Rep. Gina Mosbrucker (R-Goldendale) received unanimous support in the Washington House of Representatives Wednesday on a bill to equip law enforcement with trained dogs that could sniff out fentanyl and provide immunity from civil damages under certain circumstances for K9 handlers.
She said that House Bill 1635 would require the Washington State Criminal Justice Commission develop model standards to train and certify the K9s.
“There are two kinds of fentanyl: pharmaceutical, which helps people through surgeries and cancer treatment, and the illegally-manufactured fentanyl, which is killing people,” Mosbrucker said. “The bill makes sure those K9 officers have immunity in certain circumstances, such as if the dog alerts to a person wearing a fentanyl patch for cancer treatment.”
If Mosbrucker’s bill is approved by the Senate, fentanyl-sniffing police dog training could begin later this year.
Exposure to a small amount of fentanyl is dangerous for K9s and officers, which has prompted the creation of containers with filtration systems. While no particles escape the containers, odors do, which experts say allow the dogs to do their jobs without harm, having been trained to keep a distance from the containers.
