Politics & Government

State Senate Passes Paramedic Care For Police K-9s

The proposed "Nero's Law" is named after the late Yarmouth police Sgt. Sean Gannon's K-9. Gannon was shot and killed in a 2018 standoff.

Nero ultimately made a full recovery, but he had to wait four hours before a retired K-9 handler could arrive at the scene and get him to a veterinarian for surgery.
Nero ultimately made a full recovery, but he had to wait four hours before a retired K-9 handler could arrive at the scene and get him to a veterinarian for surgery. (Shutterstock)

BOSTON — The Massachusetts State Senate on Wednesday voted unanimously in support of "Nero's Law," a bill that would allow injured police K-9 units to receive emergency medical care and transport from paramedics.

Massachusetts state law allows only veterinary professionals to administer care to police dogs, but that could soon change as the bill now advances to the state House of Representatives. If the bill becomes law, emergency officials would treat police dogs the same way they would treat an injured human officer.

The bill is named after Yarmouth K9 Nero, Sgt. Sean Gannon's dog, who was shot in the face and neck when Gannon was fatally shot during a police standoff in 2018. Nero ultimately made a full recovery, but he had to wait four hours before a retired K-9 handler could arrive at the scene and get him to a veterinarian for surgery.

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"We rely on canines to serve alongside police officers to go where we cannot, seek out what we cannot detect, and search for the vulnerable in their most trying moments, yet existing law prohibits emergency responders from treating and transporting police canines like Nero when they are most in need," said state Sen. Julian Cyr. "I'm proud that the Senate is honoring Sergeant Gannon’s legacy and his example by protecting our canine friends who have been our companions and partners in public safety and so much more."

The bill has also received support from the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, as well as Gannon's family, veterinarians and members of the public safety community.

Find out what's happening in Barnstable-Hyanniswith free, real-time updates from Patch.


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