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Crescent City Police honor K‑9 'Lieutenant Kai' in retirement; Yang Lowe promoted to sergeant
Summary
Council and police leaders presented awards Dec. 2 recognizing the department's K‑9 program, promoted officer Yang Lowe to sergeant and celebrated the retirement of patrol dog Lieutenant Kai after 435 deployments and hundreds of arrests and seizures, according to departmental statistics read at the meeting.
The Crescent City Police Department and city council held a recognition ceremony Dec. 2 praising the department's K‑9 program, presenting a retirement tribute for police dog Lieutenant Kai and swearing in Yang Lowe as a sergeant.
Chief Griffin led remarks recognizing sergeant Lowe’s community ties and promotion. The chief administered an oath for Lowe’s promotion to sergeant and described Lowe’s cultural advocacy and steady work in the department. Lowe addressed the council briefly, thanking the city, the community, family and coworkers.
During a longer commendation, the department read Lieutenant Kai’s service statistics: “435 deployments, 507 arrests,” together with seizures and evidence tallies recited at the meeting — including $80,308 in seized currency; 1.42 kilograms of methamphetamine; 311 grams of heroin; 48 grams of cocaine; 35 kilograms of marijuana; 3.2 grams of fentanyl; roughly 300 pills of controlled substances; and multiple firearms. The chief and K‑9 handlers framed the program as both a public-safety and public-relations success: the dog and handler presence were used for community outreach, school visits, and social-media engagement.
Speakers credited a mix of funding and community support for keeping the K‑9 program robust. Officials said the Tamaki Foundation and a local measure, Measure S, had supported dogs and vehicles; volunteers and donations also fund much of the volunteer K‑9 program. The department said it now runs roughly 10 dogs total when including working patrol dogs and volunteer “comfort” and search canines — three working patrol canines and several volunteer teams — and noted ongoing training partnerships with regional trainers and Pelican Bay State Prison teams.
The council’s recognition was ceremonial: the meeting included an oath of office for Yang Lowe and presentation of a chief’s commendation for Sergeant Lopez for his leadership of the canine program. Chief Griffin and others said the dog will be retired from patrol and celebrated as part of the department’s family and outreach efforts.
The department said it would continue training and noted an electronics-detection canine is being trained, part of a broader expansion of capabilities beyond traditional scent and apprehension work.
