CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Officers with the Charleston Police Department and other law enforcement agencies gathered at the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center on Thursday to honor a police dog.
The service for Axel came days after a crime suspect shot the K-9 during an altercation on East Point Drive. Axel had joined the police department early last year and began serving alongside Patrolman Josh Clendenin around Labor Day.
“Most times — whenever we honor a hero — it’s a person, a human,” Deputy Chief Scott Dempsey told service attendees. “Today, we’re honoring a four-legged, brave soul who was devoted, trustworthy, loyal, even up to the last second of his brave life.”
Axel died Saturday as police attempted to arrest 50-year-old Samuel Paul Ranson. Axel directed Clendenin and Patrolman Ward Childress toward Ranson’s location in a wooded area. The officers and Ranson engaged in an altercation, in which Ranson shot Axel. The officers returned fire and struck Ranson, who died at a hospital.
“For those of us in this room that have been with our pets in their final moments, you know they know when the end is near when they’re looking up at you at that time,” Police Chief Tyke Hunt said. “Axel sensed his wound was fatal, and like people, he sought a comfortable place to be. That place, that sense of security was beside Patrolman Clendenin, his partner.”
Dempsey recalled when Cpl. Anthony Gaylor selected Axel from a North Carolina kennel. According to Dempsey, Gaylor “knew immediately” Axel would be a great addition to the police department.
“He was full of confidence, full of poise, and even had a little attitude, which is what [Gaylor] was looking for,” Dempsey said of Axel.
Axel took part in 14 weeks of training, similar to the time necessary for a person to complete courses at the West Virginia State Police Academy. The K-9 received certification and joined Clendenin on his shift.
“Both had numerous successful tracts and apprehensions in major narcotic seizures,” Dempsey said. “But as hard-working as Patrolman Clendenin and Axel was, they also knew — especially Axel — when it was quitting time. Some dogs can’t do it. Axel, it was like you flipped a switch and said, ‘All right, it’s time to go home and relax a little.'”
Axel was not just Clendenin’s partner; he became part of Clendenin’s family. Cpl. Adam Lindell — who works with the police department’s K-9 unit — read a statement from Clendenin’s wife, Hanna, about what Axel meant to her.
“Axel took a piece of my heart with him the night he passed away that it will never be able to get back,” Lindell read. “My family and I owe him a debt that we can never repay. Because of his bravery and loyalty, I have my husband, and my children have their father.”
Axel’s body was treated by the state Medical Examiner’s Office on Sunday before being taken to Cooke Pet Crematorium in Nitro.