Town to Talk with Police Union on K-9 Program’s Fate

The morning after the town’s recent decision to suspend its police department’s K-9 program, a flurry of displeased phone calls tied up lines at Town Hall.

“The first calls that came in said we fired [Officer Dave] Cari,” said Director of Town Affairs Paul Hongo of the K-9 program’s sole dog handler. “The police union [through a Facebook page] was encouraging members of the general public to support him.”

The program’s suspension made national headlines when late-night TV host Jimmy Fallon included the story in one of his monologues. “A police department in Connecticut is laying off its only police dog because of budget cuts,” said Fallon. “If you think the dog’s upset you should see the cop who has to start sniffing criminal’s butts.”

The floodgates first opened when Cari, who has been out on workers’ compensation since cracking three ribs last December, Hongo said, submitted a memo to Capt. Henry Butler dated May 24, wherein he said he “should be returning to work soon.” Also in the memo, Cari asked for maintenance to his patrol car, which potentially totaled more than $5,000, according to Hongo.

Acting Police Chief Gaetano Nappi responded to Cari in a memo dated June 2: “Please be advised that due to budgetary constraints it is not feasible at this time to continue the K-9 Program. It has been suspended indefinitely. You have the option to retain your K-9 Partner Daro as your pet.”

The program’s suspension does not mean Cari is without a job; he is still on the force and his yearly police officer’s base salary of $62,185 is unaffected, said Hongo. The cut does, however, strip Cari of $2,200 a year, which is what he was getting paid under contract for 30 minutes of overtime on off days to take care of Daro, according to Hongo.

The program has not been eliminated entirely and can be started up as easily as it was suspended, said Hongo.

A look into the police union contract

According to the labor agreement, the town may suspend the K-9 program at any time if “budgetary constraints” exist and the union cannot resist that decision.

Article XVII – Pay Rates, Section 4. (K-9), Paragraph C of the 2005-2012 Labor Agreement states: “The Union hereby waves any and all claims which may arise as a result of the discontinuance of the K-9 Program if such discontinuance results from budgetary constraints.”

“I heard it was financial,” said AFSCME Council 15 labor negotiator Troy Raccuia, a former East Haven police union president. Council 15 represents East Haven police union Local 1662. “It was very disappointing.”

However, the labor agreement did not stop police and union leaders from reportedly making angry catcalls at Hongo during a Town Council meeting Tuesday night.

Hongo said his “spiel to the public” on Tuesday was meant to inform residents that the town really hasn’t had a K-9 program since Cari has been out of work, because “the dog can’t come in and team with someone else.”

“They are truly tied at the hip,” said Hongo, adding that in the current fiscal year, which ends on June 30, Cari has only worked 87 days. “Fundamentally speaking, since he’s been out we have been without the program.”

In the wake of Cari’s absence, Hongo said East Haven has been receiving K-9 assistance from neighboring towns or state police. An officer at the Tuesday meeting reportedly said that means waiting up to 45 minutes for the outsourced help.

Hongo said the average use of the K-9 police team in a typical year – i.e., when it’s running full time – is about six to eight times a year. Countering this estimation, which he received from Nappi, Hongo said at the Town Council meeting an officer said the dog was used in 45 felony apprehensions in the last two years. Hongo said that figure is tough to believe because Cari has only worked 87 days in the current fiscal year.

Capt. Geoffrey Morgan of the Branford Police Department said his force has one dog and one dog handler. He said Branford’s K-9 patrol team is “not a piece of equipment you use only once in a while.”

“It’s an intricate part of the force,” said Morgan. “Anytime the police officer is engaged in police duty, the dog is with him.”

Calls to the East Haven Police Department were referred to Town Hall.

Town officials to sit down with police union

Later this month, the Town Council’s Public Safety Subcommittee will meet to discuss the fate of the K-9 program. It has invited members of Local 1662 to attend.

“When we sit down with Hongo we will explore all possibilities,” said Raccuia. “We will negotiate in good faith and come to a solution.”

“I told the union if and when Cari comes back I would be up for discussion,” said Hongo. “I can’t go in any direction until I know the status of Cari.”

Hongo said one of the possible adjustments to the K-9 program in order to get it running again would be to make it mandatory that the K-9 police team work a certain shift. He said that under contract every three months an officer chooses the shift he or she would like to work. Cari chose to work from midnight to 8:30 a.m., said Hongo.

“Anyone will tell you the use of the dog is best between 6 p.m. and 2 a.m.,” said Hongo.

Raccuia said the union would be open to such changes.

“The police feel they’re under attack,” said Hongo. “We’re trying to be good managers.”