Officer fired over police dog’s death

By Chris Fortune

The Savannah police lieutenant charged in the death of a K-9 officer has been fired.

The city’s board of aldermen voted to terminate Daniel Zeigler’s employment, officials announced Tuesday afternoon. Zeigler is charged with misdemeanor animal abuse in the death of the K-9, Horus, in June.

A probable cause statement filed in the case said Zeigler and Horus completed their overnight shift at 4:50 a.m. on June 20, according to an Andrew County Dispatch Log. Zeigler later contacted Savannah Police Chief Dave Vincent at 5:54 p.m. and informed him K-9 Horus was dead.

Vincent responded to Zeigler’s residence and found the dog dead. Vincent said K-9 Horus had been left in the Savannah Police K-9 vehicle following the end of their shift and had died of heat exposure, the probable cause statement said.

Kansas City International Airport reported a high of 88 degrees Fahrenheit at 3:53 p.m. that day.

Zeigler’s vehicle was tested for functionality in high temperatures, and the results showed that the AceK9 system was working in the car and had to be manually deactivated. AceK9 is a system that aims to protect police K-9s by sounding alarms or sending alerts when vehicles’ internal temperatures get too high. The probable cause statement said the deactivation of the system “directly contributed” to Horus’ death.

Maximum punishments for a Class A misdemeanor are a year in jail and a fine of $2,000.

Zeigler will appear for an arraignment at 1 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 8, in front of Associate Circuit Judge Chad Gaddie.