CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio — An internal investigation by the Circleville Police Department concluded that the former officer who deployed his K-9 on a man following a 30-mile pursuit acted within department policy.
A document obtained by 10TV detailed what the use of force review board found during its investigation into former officer Ryan Speakman releasing the K-9 on 23-year-old Jadarrius Rose, of Memphis, Tennessee.
The review was conducted by three officers and an acting captain from the Circleville Police Department and the chief from the South Bloomfield Police Department in Pickaway County. A member of a K-9 training agency was not present during the review.
On July 4, troopers with the Ohio State Highway Patrol tried to stop a commercial semitruck that was missing a mudflap and failed to halt for an inspection, according to a highway patrol incident report. Circleville police were called in to assist.
Rose initially refused to get out of the truck and later defied instructions to get on the ground, according to the incident report and the body cam video. Rose eventually got on his knees and raised his hands in the air.
The body camera video shows Speakman holding back the K-9, and a trooper can be heard off-camera repeatedly yelling, “Do not release the dog with his hands up!” However, Speakman deploys the dog and it can be seen in the video attacking Rose, who yells “Get it off! Please! Please!”
Rose was treated at a hospital for dog bites. He was charged with failure to comply.
Speakman was fired by the police department after he was accused of not meeting “the standards and expectations we hold for our police officers.” Documents indicated that he was fired for violating department policies and speaking about the incidents with others despite being warned not to do so.
The review board found that Speakman and the other officers involved acted within department policies on the use of force and canine operations.
The review board pointed out in the report that the K-9 was distracted and unsure of his intended target due to the number of officers giving commands to Rose. The K-9 had to be redirected as it initially went toward the wrong target.
The board recommended that the incident be sent to the K-9 training agency for review since a K-9 training representative was not present during the board review.