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Remy, Shelbyville K-9 officer, sniffed around the campus of Shelbyville Central High School Tuesday morning looking for drugs. While the K-9 officers got "hits" in several locations, no drugs were found. One weapon was discovered in the trunk of a student's vehicle. (T-G Photo by Brian Mosely) [Order this photo] |
With the keen noses of five K-9 officers at work, Shelbyville and Bedford County authorities, along with help from Rutherford County and the city of La Vergne, conducted a drug sweep of Shelbyville Central High School Tuesday morning.
"We're going to run several dogs through here and see if we can't find any drugs this morning," Bedford County Sheriff Randall Boyce said.
As a result, students were instructed to stay in their classrooms behind locked doors.
But while the K-9 officers got several "hits" on student lockers and cars, no drugs were found, although a weapon was discovered in the trunk of one vehicle that came under suspicion.
Occasionally, an officer would place a small amount of drugs in a locker ahead of the dogs' search pattern, just to make sure they could get a "hit."
The animals never failed in that regard, but after a two-hour search by the K-9s and their handlers, authorities came up empty handed.
"I guess for a school this size ....that's pretty good," Assistant Principal Whit Taylor said following the search.
Officer Tracey Nelson, who is the handler for drug dog Remy, said that school officials will ask law enforcement once or twice a year to do a sweep of the school building and parking lot to see if any drugs are present.
Nelson and Remy have been doing the sweeps for the past ten years, ever since she was partnered with the furry officer and Nelson, who graduated in 1983, also recalls sweeps done when she was in the school.
But as the heat of the morning wore on, the K-9 officers began to tire during their search of the school's parking lots, requiring frequent breaks.
Two of the dogs "hit" on a car that was later searched by officers and school administrators. While no drugs were found, a piece of lumber with a carved handle was recovered from the trunk.
Taylor said the student was told to take the piece of wood home by the school's student resource officer and if he should bring it back, it would be confiscated "and we'll deal with it after that."
The student was also questioned if anyone who possessed drugs had been in his vehicle or if drugs had been used in the car, since the K-9s are able to detect even a lingering odor or just residue of drugs.
Two other vehicles were searched after the K-9s indicated on them as well, but nothing was found in either car following a search.
Boyce said they would "probably not" run the dogs through the other schools in the county that same day, since the dogs don't like to work too much at a time.
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Great job Remy & Friends!! Great teamwork...glad to see so many departments coming together like that. I'm sure someone is going to get on here and comment about all the hits Remy got but found nothing...Just because it wasn't there that day doesn't mean it was NEVER there. These dogs are seldom wrong. As a parent, if you suspect your child is involved with drugs, talk to them..ask them..drug test them yourself (you can get a testing kit at any pharmacy)! Be proactive! Don't wait for something to happen before you address the problem. Just out of curiosity, what happened to all of the Just Say No and Dare programs?? I remember being in those groups for years in school...do they still exist?
Glad to see you keeping the students on their toes. I hope this will continue. thanks
Perhaps,Remy and friends hit on an exposure to a prescribed drug or an illicit drug used in the past.
(Those substances need not have been on school property.)
But,it's better that they take note of residues of gunpowder from a re-enactment or hunting trip or drugs on a jacket worn by a student's parent that works at a hospital or pharmacy than to have youngsters harm themselves and others with detectable contraband.
As sensitive as the noses of these dog detectives are,I bet the officers have to be careful that the hits they arrange don't provide a false positive when the same place is swept again at a later date.
I agree with all the statements above, let's also give credit to the students as well. I hope and pray this indicates students are learning that drugs are not cool. I'm very proud of our CHS students.
I've seen Offer Nelson and Remy work before. She is an excellant handler and Remy is just amazing to watch. They are perfect partners. I'm thankful that no drugs were found at the school.
This is in reply to Thatsmystory post--not stepping on anyones toes just wanted to let you know what I know since I know Tracey and Remy personally.
"Perhaps,Remy and friends hit on an exposure to a prescribed drug or an illicit drug used in the past.
(Those substances need not have been on school property.)"
First off I will state Tracey & I are closely related- so I do know that These dogs are trained to hit on different types of substances through extensive training--wether the drug was used in the past or not the dog will hit on what it smells,and with that being said..a drug is a drug if the dog hits on it;it means its been there and regardless if it was 6 months ago--its still illegal..and if the drug itself may not have been on the school property--there is a thing called drug parphenilla--which the dog will hit on as well. If someone smoked pot a year ago--would the dog hit on that--more than likely no. My point being that if the dog hit on something its been there. These dogs are trained and trained and trained. They know what they are looking for!
"As sensitive as the noses of these dog detectives are,I bet the officers have to be careful that the hits they arrange don't provide a false positive when the same place is swept again at a later date."
The hits they arrange is to get the dog in a "searching mode" They substances that are used are usually hidden something the dog will recognize then hidden throughout whatever it may be--say a school locker. I wouldn't think they would take a bag of pot and just throw it in someone's locker and tell the dog to find it. I assure you that they are more careful about the way they go about making sure that it isnt giving a false positive the next time around.
Alot of people don't realize how smart these dogs are. They have been through training after training to do what they do as well as still training and training.
I do not mean this in a rude way so I hope that noone gets offended by this.. I just wanted to inform you just so you know these dogs are extremely smart.. and if anyone had ever had the opportunity to watch them work..its truly amazing watching what they can really do.. and you will truly be amazed at what they can find.
Anyways--Wish you all a good night! =)
I will also agree about the detectable contraband..Im not sure why that student was told to take this item home & not bring it back. Why wasn't it confiscated right then? Not sure!