Video: Police Canines Honored at Memorial Service

Justice and Bear were laid to rest among their best friends with the same decorum any officer would expect. 

It was a somber afternoon as the two police canines were honored for their service at Curlew Hills Memory Gardens Pet Cemetery in Palm Harbor Tuesday afternoon.

About 50 people including members of the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, Clearwater Police, Fort Myers Police, citizens and about 11 police canines gathered to honor the lives of these fallen police canines.  

“These dogs don’t get a salary, they don’t get health insurance, they don’t get a pension," said Rev. Danny MacDonald, of North Bay Community Church. "What they give is everything.”

Suzette Cook, of Dunedin, came to the ceremony with her dog Vito to pay their respect for the officers.

“These dogs are our heroes,” Cook said.

Retired deputy James Durrett worked with Bear from 1980 to 1987. 

Few officers have a track record like Bear. He caught 400 suspects. He trailed hundreds of miles of scents. He even was stabbed by a suspect and lived to bark about it.

“He had a heck of a nose,” Durrett said.

Bear died in 1987. Durrett kept his ashes since then.

"I miss him. When he passed away, he's never left me," Durrett said.

He brought them to the cemetery now though so Bear “could be with his friends.”

On average law enforcement canines begin their training between 15 months and two years old. Due to their high agility job - which includes running, jumping over fences and following trails - they have a tendency toward hip problems and retire after about seven or eight years.

Justice is another canine remembered during the service.

He served from 2003 to 2006 with the sheriff’s office.

One case Justice worked stands out to his handler Cpl. Randy Corlett. It wasn’t Justice’s biggest case, longest trail or  largest drug bust. 

It was a burglary call at the end of their shift around 5:30 a.m. A sexual predator broke into a home near Dunedin and tried to get to a nine year old boy. The man got spooked and ran off. But Justice didn’t let him get far. 

“We found the guy and made a difference in that boy’s life,” Corlett said. 

When Justice wasn’t chasing bad guys he was home with Corlett and his family.

“He was an 85 pound lap dog,” Corlett said.

Justice died last year. His grave marker is placed next to Bear.