Largo settles police dog bite claim

Bear, a Largo police dog who died of cancer last March, was known by many for his spirited crime fighting.

Sabahudin Bajric will likely remember Bear as the dog who mistakenly bit him, leaving him with permanent injuries and a 15-month-long quest for money from the city.

Commissioners last night agreed to settle the liability claim Bajric filed against the city for $55,000. Bajric has already received $14,000 in medical expenses and lost wages from the city, although it was unclear Tuesday whether that was included in the settlement.

Bear bit Bajric in January 2007 at a Shell gas station on East Bay Drive where Bajric was working. The German shepherd was responding to a possible intruder at the gas station but mistook an innocent bystander for his target.

"He was doing what he thought was right," said Largo City Manager Norton "Mac" Craig. "He was a good dog."

Bear was put to sleep at age 8 due to cancer of the liver and spleen last March. He helped catch about 80 burglars in his five-year career and was well liked in the community. His death even spurred Craig to propose that a memorial be built to recognize the city's police dogs. Details of the memorial are still being worked out.

One of Bear's more memorable accomplishments happened three years ago when he apprehended someone who had allegedly stolen money from Publix, Albertsons and other Pinellas County grocery stores. Bear chased the suspect, who had fled from his mother's house, and found him hiding under a brush pile near Lakeview Road and Missouri Avenue in Clearwater.

Canine officers are known for their tenacity in helping police catch predators, says Largo sergeant Ed Sohoski, who supervised Bear. Canine officers bite when their handler tells them to do so, when they are threatened in the absence of their handler, or if they feel the need to protect their handler.

"As a handler, the bond that you build with canine officers, it's just fantastic," Sohoski said. "They just become a best friend, they become part of your family. The dog learns to trust you and you learn to trust that dog. At times you're depending on that dog for survival."