I Pet You Didn't Know: Talented Charlie Finds a Place on the Task Force

There are so many reasons why dogs are called man’s best friend. They provide us with companionship, joy, and love, search for missing people, even detect cancer. These four-legged wonders also serve those with both physical and mental disabilities and help to calm PTSD. Law enforcement relies on K-9s to help capture criminals or search for narcotics or bombs. And now Delaware County, the state of Pennsylvania and the entire Tri-State region have a new dog in the house and her name is Charlie.

Charlie, a two-year-old Labrador, has joined the Internet Crimes Against Children Pennsylvania Task Force located in Delaware County. She is an electronic-detection forensic K-9 and is one of less than two dozen across the country. Charlie can detect hidden computers, cell phones, laptops, flash drives, even micro SD cards!  

Delaware County District Attorney Jack Whelan explained, “The Federal government, through Homeland Security, contacted us a number of months ago and asked me and Chief Ryan [Chief of the Delaware County Criminal Investigation Division] if we would be interested in obtaining a canine that would be able to be utilized in smelling electronic equipment. And certainly, we love dogs so it was an easy decision for us to be able to say "Yes", and to cooperate with them in having a dog for our Internet Crimes Against Children's Task Force.”

Nat Evans, a forensic analyst with the Delaware County Criminal Investigation Division, volunteered to become Charlie’s handler which would include not only working and training with Charlie but also becoming a family pet when she wasn’t on duty.

Charlie received her training in Ohio where the odor of electronic devices was imprinted on her before coming to Delaware County but she and Evans still train daily. “Once the odor is imprinted on the dog, it's just reinforcing that. Charlie is a toy reward versus a food reward dog. So, when she finds the odor she gets her tennis ball, and that is the drive for her. Every day I'll do some training with her. We'll go out and we'll throw her tennis ball around just to reinforce that play drive in her,” explained Evans.

When Evans and Charlie are brought in for a search, Evans will look for certain signs from her that indicate that she has found a scent. Usually, she sits as her signal to her handler that she has found the source. Because of his dedication to learning how Charlie works and learning all her movements, Evans is still able to tell if Charlie is interested in an area but isn’t able to pinpoint an exact location. “I can tell by the way her head is moving that she is very interested in a particular spot of a room. I am then going to direct the detectives or the agents at the scene that they need to go back to that particular area and re-search it,” said Evans. “Charlie is not used as the primary search. I bring her in after the search warrant has been executed and the detectives have found all the electronic devices that are visible. Then I bring her in to basically do a final sweep to make sure something wasn't missed.”

When not on duty, Charlie has that sweet, lovable personality that Labradors are known for. “She's great around kids,” said Evans. “My daughter has to hug her and give her a kiss every night before she goes to bed. She's got a great personality. She'll lick you to death, that's for sure. Loves to be pet.”

 Welcome to Delaware County, Charlie! We are glad to have you!