Testimony continues in trooper dog kicking case

RALEIGH -- A hearing stemming from the firing of a state Highway Patrol sergeant who kicked his police dog continued to focus today on the "ugly" business of training canines for law enforcement.

The lieutenant who trained Sgt. Charles L. Jones testified today that two videos of Jones' treatment of his dog, Ricoh, showed no abuse of the animal.

"I had seen it before," said Lt. Don Cole, who joined the patrol in 1989. "It wasn't mind boggling to me."

Jones was fired in September, a month after another trooper used his cell phone to record Jones as he tied Ricoh to a loading dock railing so that his hind legs touched the ground and his front legs were in the air. The video shows Jones kicking Ricoh five times to try to get the dog to release a toy. A second video shot seconds later shows Ricoh still tied up as Jones retrieves the toy. The dog was not seriously injured.

The hearing is being held to determine whether Jones should get his job back.

Cole testified that he has seen training exercises at the patrol and elsewhere in which dogs are shocked with special collars, hung from tree limbs until they are nearly unconscious and swung around with such force that they are airborne, a technique known as helicoptering. In one instance, a helicoptered dog was released in flight and its body hit a tree, he said.

Cole said the purpose of such techniques is to gain control of the dog. He said Ricoh was especially difficult to train because he showed a "leader of the pack" mentality.

During Cole's testimony, Jones' attorney, Jack O'Hale, showed a video of a Baltimore police canine officer performing a technique called an "alpha roll." The video shows the officer slamming a police dog on its back and then straddling it, and staring the dog in the eye. The intent is for the dog to realize that the officer is the boss.

Cole said that is a standard training technique.

Assistant Attorney General Ashby Ray questioned whether Cole was making light of Jones' actions. Ray noted that a patrol captain investigating the incident had reported that Cole said Jones' actions were "excessive."

Cole also said that he had never kicked a dog while it was tied up, nor had he trained anyone to do so.

Also testifying today was the deputy patrol commander who said he had been pressured to fire Jones. Lt. Col. Cecil Lockley said that he became aware that the governor's press office wanted Jones fired and thought that he had no choice but to do so.

Lockley read aloud from a statement that he gave to O'Hale on March 17 in which he said he wouldn't have fired Jones otherwise.

"In my opinion, the outcome would be different because Sgt. Jones acted in the manner he was trained, even though it was an ugly manner," Lockley said.

Lockley admitted during cross-examination that no one had told him to fire Jones and that he had had no contact with the governor's office. He said that he feared he could be fired for not dismissing Jones.

State Administrative Judge Fred Morrison showed some surprise at that contention, noting that Lockley has 31 years on the patrol.

The hearing is expected to continue into tomorrow. Jones is intending to testify, O'Hale said. Typically, the judge does not issue a recommendation until weeks after the hearing is completed and all evidence entered into the record.