Thanks to Bane’s Law, injuring and killing a police dog in Kansas will soon be a crime

WICHITA, Kansas (KWCH) – After months of legislative wrangling, penalties will be increased for anyone in Kansas who harms or kills a police dog.

On Saturday, the Kansas Fraternal Order of Police Banes signed the Police Dog Protection Act. The law is named after Bane, a Sedgwick County police dog, was killed in the line of duty last year.

Bane was killed while attempting to apprehend a fugitive. Kaylon Kirkwood was arrested and charged with his killing, which occurred when Bane attempted to lure Kirkwood out of a sewer. Kirkwood is accused of strangling Bane during a fight.

“These dogs are important,” said Dan Hawkins, speaker of the Kansas House of Representatives. “They are partners with law enforcement, so I consider them part of law enforcement, and if you kill a police officer, that is a capital crime; killing a police dog should at least be a felony.”

In addition to being classified as a serious crime, the law provides for a minimum sentence of 90 days in jail and a $10,000 fine for anyone found guilty of causing harm to an animal in the service of the police.

Governor Laura Kelly initially vetoed Bane’s bill Before the The House of Representatives and the Senate passed it in an extraordinary vote. Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Deputy Tyler Brooks, who was Bane’s handler, said it was a relief when the law finally passed.

“It was a great relief when I heard that the bill passed with two-thirds of the vote. We were a little nervous about whether we would get the votes needed to get the bill passed,” Brooks said.

Deputy Brooks, who is currently training with a new police service dog named Chase, says it’s rare for a dog to be killed in the line of duty, but Bane’s Law will help police respond in the worst-case scenario.

“I’m not sure how often this will be used in the future,” Brooks said. “We hope never, but having it available in case something happens is a big win for us.”

The law comes into force on July 1.

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