NEWTON COUNTY, Ga. — The Newton County Sheriff's Office is blaming a faulty air-conditioning unit for the death of one of its K-9 officers last summer, according to recently released documents from an internal investigation.
Back on Aug. 30 2021, K-9 officer Tom-Tom was reported dead while in the rear of his handler's patrol vehicle.
A recent investigation into the dog's death revealed Tom-Tom suffered from hyperthermia, likely a result of a heat stroke.
"Each year, canines suffer and expire when their handlers inadvertently leave them in stationary vehicles, even for just a minute," the sheriff's office added.
On the date of the dog's death, the temperature outside was 88 degrees, according to The Weather Channel. The investigation determined that as a result, the temperature inside of the police vehicle was closer to 102.8 degrees.
However, in this case, the sheriff’s office claims it was a mechanical system malfunction that led to such extreme temperatures within the vehicle, not a case of Tom-Tom's handler being neglectful.
In fact, the investigation noted Tom-Tom and his handler had been recently reassigned to a vehicle less equipped to handle K-9 units.
On the day of the dog's death, Tom-Tom's handler checked their vehicle's air conditioning system and gave the dog plenty of water, according to the investigation.
As a result of this tragic incident, the Newton County Sheriff's Office has purchased another appropriate K-9 vehicle, which is equipped with a special heat-alert system to notify the handler if, and when, the vehicle's interior temperature ascends to dangerous levels.
This new vehicle will also have a reserve system that immediately activates should the primary one fail.
The sheriff's office said it is also updating its policy that requires handlers to conduct periodic safety assessments to ensure situations like this don't happen again.
"The death of K-9 Tom-Tom greatly impacted our agency. He was loved and cherished by those he worked alongside at the courthouse — including judges, court personnel, and visitors — and throughout the state and nation. His death was an unfortunate and unintentional incident," stated Sheriff Ezell Brown.
The sheriff also stated most canine units have received new vehicles or will be receiving new vehicles as a result of the accident.