K9 Officer Killed
Dec 31st, 2007 by Mark
Last story of the year and it sucks.
Oceanside PD K9 Officer “Stryker” was killed tonight in the line of duty. “Stryker” was released to subdue a suspect on the Coronado Bridge. The suspect survived the fall, but “Stryker” did not. He was retrieved by the San Diego Harbor Patrol.
The pursuit started in Oceanside , after OPD attempted to pull the suspect over for driving erratically. The suspect fled, and after driving close to 50 miles the suspect stopped in the middle of the Coronado Bridge. “Stryker” was released to subdue the suspect. The suspect grabbed the dog and leaped over the side of the bridge. The suspect survived, “Stryker” did not.
The Coronado Bridge (wikipedia entry)is slightly more than 2 miles long. It is built on an arc so the the Navy ships can pass underneath without having to raise or lower any segments. It also allows for continuous traffic flow. It is approximately 200 feet high at the highest sections.
Coronado Bridge looking into the City of Coronado. On the far end of
peninsula is Naval Station North Island
Tags: navy, coronado, san diego, oceanside, naval station north island, police dog, k9
I HATE PEOPLE!!
Some updated info:
The suspect, 27-year-old Cory Byron of Vista, is being treated at the UCSD Medical Center for a collapsed lung and will be charged with causing the dog’s death, driving under the influence and evading police, a California Highway Patrol dispatcher said.
You can also see a picture of Stryker here:
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2008/01/01/news/top_stories/10_01_391_1_08.txt
Having lost our little beagle three months ago, and still missing her presence in our home to this day, I am sure the officer who had Stryker as his “partner” will miss his companion too.
My sympathy to the officer in question.
Tammy Swofford