A new plan for K-9s?

Vermont State Police K-9 Ruger just found a backpack full of heroin hidden in a dryer. He's three weeks into drug school at the Vermont Police Academy. "He'll never be trained on marijuana," said Ofc. Ryan Prince of the Springfield Police Department.

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WCAX Investigates: A new plan for K-9s? WCAX Investigates: A new plan for K-9s? Marijuana Matters: Vermont's drug-sniffing K-9s face an uncertain future By Jennifer Costa | Posted: Thu 12:54 PM, Feb 01, 2018 | Updated: Thu 8:34 PM, Feb 01, 2018 PITTSFORD, Vt. (WCAX) Vermont State Police K-9 Ruger just found a backpack full of heroin hidden in a dryer. He's three weeks into drug school at the Vermont Police Academy. For decades, the state has depended on these dogs to find illegal drugs when the cops can't. But Rocky, Ruger and A.J. are part of a new generation of drug-sniffing dogs. "He'll never be trained on marijuana," said Ofc. Ryan Prince of the Springfield Police Department. That's right-- law enforcement is teaching their drug dogs to ignore pot. Robert Ryan/K-9 Trainer: If they show any interest in it at all, they're told 'No!' and to leave it alone. Reporter Jennifer Costa: Is that a big change for you after so many years teaching marijuana? Robert Ryan: Yes, it is. Revolutionary change actually. For years, Vermont police officers have used the smell of marijuana and alerts from pot-detecting K-9s as probable cause to get into tens of thousands of cars. That's also how a lot of drug arrests are made. "This gives us the nexus to get in that vehicle," Vergennes Police Chief George Merkel said. "And no more. It's gone." A critical tool largely off the table come July 1 for roadside cops at traffic stops. They will need more evidence than the smell of pot at scenes. And Vermont's 23 marijuana dogs could become a liability in those situations. "Dogs do not converse with us. They don't put up one paw for heroin and the other one for marijuana," Merkel said. "It presents a huge problem for us." Merkel tells us a common tactic of drug traffickers is to put a legal amount of marijuana next to a secret compartment of illegal drugs like heroin. "How can I say that the heroin is what the dog alerted on versus the marijuana?" Merkel asked. He worries if the K-9 was trained to detect drugs including marijuana, a good defense attorney could raise reasonable doubt about the search, arguing it's possible the legal substance is the only reason the dog found the illegal substance. "Officers have a tough enough time as it is," Merkel said. "We don't need this right now." "Will it happen? Could it happen? Absolutely," Chittenden County State's Attorney Sarah George said. "I think that that concern is legitimate." Vermont's busiest state's attorney tells us there's no doubt the move to legal pot will limit car searches, which could make it easier for criminals to get away with drug trafficking. "I'm sure it will be something that's challenged because it hasn't happened yet. I don't know what the court would do," George said. George says predicting how judges across 14 counties will rule is anyone's guess at this point. But she tells us large-scale drug seizures are usually the result of lengthy investigations, not a lucky car stop. "If that ends up being harder for us to find then, that would definitely be an unfortunate side effect, but I don't know how often that is happening," she said. Still, all of this uncertainty is exactly why Vermont's Police Academy decided to stop training new K-9s to find marijuana three years ago. Jennifer Costa: So you saw this coming? Robert Ryan: Yes. K-9 trainer Ryan says now training focuses solely on cocaine, crack cocaine, ecstasy, methamphetamine and heroin. He tells us trainers in some states claim to be able to erase marijuana from a K-9's scent vocabulary. "I am just not willing to give that a try," Ryan said. Ryan believes desensitizing a dog is bogus and it's too risky in the courtroom. "I think it would be difficult to convince a jury that a dog that had been trained on marijuana for years... that you can say beyond any doubt that the dog did not alert on it," Ryan said. Police tell us legal pot will not put marijuana-sniffing dogs out of work. Most of these K-9s are cross-trained for patrol. I'm told they'll stay busy with school sweeps, cases involving federal drug warrants and juvenile car stops where pot is still illegal.