Mason K-9 officer’s future sparks controversy
UPDATE: Mason’s K-9 Officer Tamarack being returned to Ingham County Animal Control
MASON, Mich. (WLNS) – Mason K-9 Officer Tamarack will not be reunited with her former partner.
That was the decision the Mason City Council came to Monday night after a contentious meeting.
The vote came weeks after K-9 handler and Mason Police Officer Hayden Wildfong resigned from his position. He was under investigation after he left his gun and utility belt unattended in the weight room at Mason High School. His presence in the school, while on duty was also a possible violation of city policies.
Wildfong, in an email to the City Council obtained by 6 News, acknowledged his error and said he resigned rather than being fired from his post.
His resignation, however, put the future of Tamarack and the city’s K-9 program up in the air. An internal posting was made for officers interested in partnering with Tamarack, but that expired on Jan. 28 without any officers stepping up to take on Tamarack.
City officials say they are trying to place Tamarack with another law enforcement agency, noting a veterinarian had given her a clean bill of health and indicated she could work for another three or four years.
In his email, Wilfong pled with the Council to sell the highly trained dog to him.
“She is a very intelligent animal that has emotions and feelings,” Wildfong wrote in his email to the city council. “She is completely lost without me. I am pleading for your assistance.”
He explained the dog’s history to the body as well.
“Tamarack was rescued from a hoarding situation, placed in a kennel, and finally given to her forever person in her forever home (at least I thought),” he wrote.
“Tam was trained by me and loves working for me. The city manager does not know what is best for Tam,” Wildfong said to the council. “Tam is not just a used tool that can be given to someone else. This is a lifelong bond that takes years to develop.”
Other members of law enforcement as well as Mason residents took to the podium to encourage the members of the council to reunite the two partners.
Ultimately, Mason City Council Member Rita Vogel made a motion to remove Tamarack from city ownership and sell her to Wildfong. Councilmember Jerry Schaffer seconded the motion and offered an amendment that the sale of the dog is at a “reasonable price.” The amendment failed, as did the motion itself. Only Vogel and Schaffer voted in favor of uniting the duo.
Following the vote, the audience expressed its disapproval of the decision.
“He lost his position,” Schaffer says of his decision related to Wildfong and Tamarack. “He made a mistake – a bad mistake – and he’s paying for it. He lost his job. There’s no use kicking a man down when he wants his dog back.”
Mayor Russell Whipple says the process of placing Tamarack needs to play out, but in the meantime, he says Wildfong knew the impact of a resignation.
“He knew this would happen when he resigned,” Whipple says. “He would lose the privilege of being the handler of that dog. That’s happening and now the city is looking for the best use for this animal.”
As for the unsecured weapon incident, the investigation ended because Wildfong resigned according to city leaders. A Facebook post on the City of Mason Government page shows Wildfong was sworn into the department in 2019.
City officials said that an incident corrective action plan was made by the Mason Chief of Police on January 22.
In the meeting, City Manager Deborah Stuart said officers are not allowed to be in the school building unless it is for official city business, which does not include working out. Wildfong said he had permission to work out at the high school in his email to the city council.
Stuart said a gun safe in the building is only to be used by the school resource officer.
“There is no need for a safe for any other officer because they should not be removing their weapon,” said the city manager.
Wildfong declined to comment after the city council meeting. The next meeting is set for February 19th where it is expected that the city manager will share more information on the agencies interested in having K-9 Tamarack on their force.
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