2023 Animal Stories Magazine

Page 12 2023 Animal Stories Lincoln Daily News February 22. 2023 When Officer Sullivan spoke about Ace with Lincoln Daily News, he was joined by Lincoln Police Chief Joseph Meister who noted that the K-9 units the city have had over the years have been highly effective in assisting with drug detection as well as offering physical assistance with arrests as needed. He said the department is better armed to detect drugs and apprehend violators thanks to the K-9 units. He also shared that there have been times, when just the promise that the dog would be released to defend his officer has subdued suspects and caused them to think twice about resisting arrest. Chief Meister noted one occasion when he was inside a building with a suspect. The suspect was looking to get away in any means possible, but when Ace arrived on the scene and the suspect was advised that the dog would pursue and subdue, the suspect decided not to take the chance. Some may not know that Ace has a rather interesting story of how he came to Lincoln. He was with another department back in 2016. Though Chief Meister was not in his current position he was in the department and knew the full story. The department had a K-9 vehicle that was on its last leg. The vehicle which is specifically equipped for the dogs needed to be replaced. At the same time, the department was looking for a dog to replace Duke, who had served from 2006 to 2014. The presiding chief at the time responded to a tip about a community that was selling their K-9 vehicle. A call was placed and the question posed was a vehicle for sale. The answer was “yes it is and it comes with a dog.” It turned out that Ace was that dog, and it was Continued --