Explosives K9
The Marin County Sheriff’s Office explosive detection canine unit was the first ATF trained and certified canine team with a local law enforcement agency in California. The mission of the unit is to respond to all incidents involving explosives and firearms where rapid detection is critical to safeguard persons and property or to find evidence.
The unit is based at the Marin County Civic Center but responds throughout the County wherever a threat exists. The unit is also a resource for other Bay Area law enforcement agencies, the State of California office of emergency services and all the Federal law enforcement agencies as part of the unit’s mutual aid and ATF partnership responsibilities.
To maintain readiness in a “no margin for error environment,” the unit trains seven days a week and is subject to call-out at anytime of the day or night.
In service since October of 2000, Canine “Verona” and her handler, Deputy Dan Marrett, have responded to bomb threats, fake device calls, lost ordinance and post blast incidences. The unit has served to protect the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, former Presidents, the National Abortion Federation conference of doctors, the World Series and the 2001 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City to name a few.
The handler and canine team is field tested and re-certified every year by the ATF and is part of the National Response Team and is a member of the Bay Area Arson Explosive Task Force.
