Nampa Police K-9 “Riddick” killed in rollover accident, two suspects in custody

NAMPA, Idaho — Two suspects are in custody after a chase left a Nampa police dog dead. The chase ended in a rollover crash that left police dog Riddick dead and Riddick's handler, Officer Cody Huss, injured. Officer Huss was treated for his injuries and released from the hospital.

• According to Nampa Police, the suspect rammed Officer Huss's vehicle, causing the patrol car to roll over several times. Police dog Riddick was ejected from the vehicle and died in the accident.
• The Nampa Police Department has begun planning a memorial service for Police Dog Riddick. Details on how the public can attend will be announced later this week.

(Below is the transcript of the broadcast report.)

Nampa police said they received a call Saturday about a possible drug deal. Police added that a chase ensued after a botched traffic stop.

The police then tried to stop the suspects using a PIT maneuver.

“As things evolve during a chase, we don't always have a choice as to what the suspect will do,” said Lt. Brad Childers, head of the Nampa Police Department's K-9 unit.

He tells me that during pursuits, they often try to keep the canine units further back, but that's not always possible. In this case, Officer Huss performed the PIT maneuver with K-9 Riddick.

“Unlike a normal PIT maneuver, what happened in this incident was that the suspect transformed himself into the police officer and intentionally rammed his patrol car,” Childers said.

This caused the patrol car to roll over several times, Childers said. Police dog Riddick was thrown from the vehicle and died in the accident.

“When we try to keep the public safe, sometimes we put ourselves in danger. So the officer and his sniffer dog obviously put themselves in danger to keep the public safe in this situation,” Childers says.

Childers tells me that the police dogs are not secured in the back of the patrol cars and can therefore be deployed at any time.

“They're free to move. The idea is that we want to get them out as quickly as possible. Police dogs are usually very, very stable back there,” Childers explained.

More than 800 hours of training are required to make a police dog ready for duty. During this time, the dogs and their handlers develop a close bond.

“We spend an insane amount of time not only teaching them things, but they teach us things, but we also build a strong, strong bond between the officer and the handler,” Childers added. “I think the importance of honoring K-9 Riddick is to show the dedication that not only he showed, but the officer showed. And just to be able to show that all of his time, effort and the hours spent together were worth something.”