Objectives: Test the immediate and sustained impact of suspending a police K9 program on officer injury, suspect injury, and suspect resistance rates.Methods: A large municipal policing agency housing one of the oldest K9 programs in the U.S. suddenly terminated the program at the close of summer 2020. We exploit this change as a natural experiment to test three hypotheses related to rates of injuries (officer and suspect) and resisting arrest. We use Bayesian modeling in an interrupted time series analysis to measure the immediate and long-term effects of the K9 apprehension program’s suspension on our hypotheses.Results: The sudden suspension of K9 apprehension was not associated with a statistical increase in officer or suspect injury, or suspect resistance, during felony arrests. Conclusions: As police agencies, communities, and stakeholders renegotiate the risks of policing, constraints on using police K9s are unlikely to impact aggregate officer or suspect safety negatively.
When a major police department suddenly ended its K-9 program in 2020, researchers found that officer injuries, suspect injuries, and suspects resisting arrest did not increase during felony arrests. This challenges common police arguments that K-9 units are essential for officer and public safety during dangerous situations. The findings suggest that police departments can restrict or eliminate K-9 programs without putting officers or suspects at greater risk of harm.
(AI-generated summary, v1, January 2026)
Citations: 0 (as of January 2026)