Ralph Pendergast, the Service Dog Program administrator for Arizona Department of Corrections, works Cricket, a "cell-phone dog," on May 18 in a training unit at the Correctional Officers Training Academy in Tucson. Photo by : Jim Davis, Arizona Daily Star
A story from Arizona had my doggie antennae at full alert:
Corrections officials are using dogs to sniff out illicit cell phones in prison cells.
And that got me thinking: My dog, Katy, could be trained to find the remote control!
So, I ask you, dog owners:
More from The Associated Press story: The dogs in Arizona are trained to identify four unique odors associated with cell phones and their components, said Kenny Vance, a service-dog trainer for the Corrections Department. The dogs also can detect batteries and phone chargers.
Cell phones are banned in prisons. Inmates found with phones can face disciplinary action and even criminal charges, depending on the severity of an incident in which a phone was used.
Inmates can use the phones to conduct criminal activity, including drug transactions and gang business, beyond prison walls, said Ralph Pendergast, trainer for the service-dog program and an administrator with the Corrections Department.
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