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West Milwaukee police propose donated dual-purpose K9 for West Allis-West Milwaukee schools
Summary
West Milwaukee Police presented a donated dual-purpose canine to the West Allis-West Milwaukee School Board Nov. 10, asking the district to adopt policy and update its MOU so the therapy-trained dog can support students and later receive narcotics training (tentatively summer 2026).
Officer Victor Herpin of the West Milwaukee Police Department introduced a proposal to place a donated, dual-purpose canine in district schools to provide regular hallway presence, emotional support and crisis intervention, with narcotics detection training planned as a later, coordinated deployment.
"If we obtain and establish a canine program for our department and our school district and our community, this dog would be dual purpose," Herpin said, describing therapy certification that begins next Tuesday and planned narcotics training next summer. He said Partners with Paws donated the dog at no cost and local vendors pledged veterinary care and food supplies.
Chief Shonda Randolph, who has led the West Milwaukee department for about a year, told the board she is open to a carefully developed plan: "I may not always be able to say yes, but if they could figure it out and come up with a plan, I'm all about it." Randolph said the department and school staff have collaborated on the idea.
Presenters said initial therapy training is a 10-week course (once weekly) and that narcotics training would be a five-week course targeted for summer 2026. Herpin said using donated dogs and donated training would substantially reduce startup costs: "Receiving a dog that's donated is gonna save us, like, $10,000," and the therapy certification training would save about $5,000.
Herpin described operational limits: narcotics detection would occur only during planned, coordinated deployments and the dog would not be allowed to sniff students indiscriminately. "When kids are in the halls, I'm not telling him, 'go sniff all these kids and find this stuff.' That's extremely unconstitutional," a presenter said.
Board members asked about required changes. Administration said next steps would include drafting policy language using Muskego-Norway/NEOLA templates and amending the district MOU with the police department; the board was told revised language and an MOU would be brought back for approval, likely within about a month.
The presenters listed facility needs and operational details the district should consider if it proceeds: school and police kennels, a home kennel for the handler (the dog would go home with the handler nightly), clear role definitions for therapy versus detection deployments, and a plan for ongoing maintenance primarily supported by donations and occasional fundraising.
The board did not take formal action on the spot; administration said it would return with recommended policy language and any MOU changes for future consideration.
