Police Animal Law and Legal Definition
Police animal means a dog or a horse employed for the purpose of helping the law enforcement agencies. These animals are trained specifically to assist the police. Police animals mainly perform the function of locating suspects and find missing persons or objects.
The following is an example of the state statute (Louisiana) defining police animal:
According to La. R.S. 14:102.8, Police animal means:
1.Any dog which is owned or the service of which is used by any state or local law enforcement agency for the principal purpose of aiding in the detection of criminal activity, enforcement of laws, or apprehension of offenders.
2. Any dog which is owned or the service of which is used by any public safety agency and which is trained to respond to instructions from its handler in the search for possibly deceased individuals and in the search and rescue of lost or missing individuals.
3.Any horse which is used by a state or local law enforcement officer in the course of his official duty.
