Sterling Heights welcomes K9 Dusty in remembrance of John “Dusty” Marcum
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The Sterling Heights Police Department welcomed the newest addition to their K9 team during a special presentation at the City's regular city council meeting on Jan. 3.

K9 Dusty is named after John "Dusty" Marcum, a former Navy SEAL Senior Chief Petty Officer who was killed at 34 years old in September 2008 during combat operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.  K9 Dusty will replace retiring K9 Officer Ivy to maintain the department's total of four K9 officers.

At the city council meeting, K9 Dusty's handler Officer James Sribniak helped introduce K9 Dusty to the community. Marcum's sister Kaylee Marcum also attended the special presentation to honor her brother's memory and welcome K9 Dusty to the department.

"We're so pleased to have K9 Dusty joining the department, and honored to be able to name him in honor of Mr. Marcum," said Sterling Heights Police Chief Dale Dwojakowski, "I'd like to thank and all our K9 handlers for their service to our community, and want to give a special thanks to Officer Steele and K9 Ivy for their years of service and wish them well on their retirement."

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The SHPD K9 unit now includes Officer Sribniak with K9 Dusty, Officer Walleman with K9 Ernie, Officer Bratheen with K9 Groot and Officer Krueger with K9 Rich.

"Dogs are tools that can do things our officers can't do," said Chief Dwojakowski. "Dogs can be trained to detect a multitude of drugs, they can track a suspect, lost child or elderly person with dementia hours after a person has left an area, and they can run up to 30 mph. Keeping our 135,000 residents safe means having the right tools to do the job, and these dogs are a part of that toolbox."

Media with questions or those seeking more information can contact Community Relations Director Melanie Davis at mdavis@sterling-heights.net or by calling (586) 446-2471 (o) or (586) 303-0923 (m).

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