b'Chasing downBy: Angela Gilesthe bad guys with K-9s helpTwo school searches, a demonstration for local elementary students,An eight-year veteran of the Clyde PD, Travagliante and another a bath and accompanying his partner on his daily shift with the Clydeofficer find themselves handling a lot more drug interdiction cases Police Department. Its all in a weeks work for Chase, the K-9 partnerthese days. During vehicle stops, even when theyre aware of the of Police Officer Tony Travagliante, 09. presence of drugs, their hands are tied without consent to search. But Travagliante and Chase, a 2-1/2 year old Belgian Malinois, are thea K-9 handler can search the exterior of a vehicle by law without a first-ever K-9 unit for the Clyde PD, located in Sandusky County indrivers consent.northwest Ohio. Since they were activated as a unit in May 2018,The only way we know for sure is if the dog indicates drugs. Thats theyve gone on drug sweeps and other searches as well as appearingautomatic probable cause, Travagliante explained. Chase validates a at community outreach activities. lot of our findings.Clyde is a small community of about 6,300 people, yet its hardlyTravagliante knew the benefits a K-9 unit could bring to a community, immune from the influx of drugs on its streets. Concerned by what henot the least of which is improving public safety. He had gained was seeing, Travagliante sprang into action. valuable insights during his time as a Berg undergrad when he was We had an older chief who really didnt see the need (for a K-9 unit),placed in an internship with Tiffin K-9 unit Officer Jake DeMonte he said. But the new chief, Monti Campbell, was open to the idea.and his partner, Tommy. An extension of his psychology major, the Travagliante was able to persuade him. I went to Monti with the idea,internship involved working with the local drug task force, the and he told me to figure out how to get the money. detective bureau and most importantly, the K-9 unit, which allowed him to hone in on the career he wanted.Thats just what Travagliante did. He knocked on doors of ClydeBecause of this exposure, it seemed natural that Travagliante would businesses, service organizations and individuals to ask for donations,pursue a K-9 as part of his work. Ive had dogs all my life, he said. But gave presentations to the City Council and made all of the necessarythe bond with Chase is something special; they are 100 percent in tune contacts and connections. The community responded with almostwith each other. Hes like a human. He has good days and bad days, $40,000 in donations, which covered the purchase of the dog, theirTravagliante said. He loves to play, but with his high drive, he would training together, making modifications to a cruiser to accommodatework himself to death if Id let him. Thats just his mentality.Chase, and other equipment and supplies.2|Heidelberg University Bulletin'