Officer Reed and JAG, Palms Springs Police Explosive-Detection Partners
Officer Harvey Reed and JAG on duty at the Palm Springs Airport
"We secured the tell-tale tapes, left police headquarters ... walked across El Cielo to the fountain. The spray from the fountain was caught by a westerly breeze and covered the walkway. We tracked wet shoes across ... the lot and walked into the main terminal of the airport…the overhead speakers reminded us not to leave our baggage unattended." - Doctor Tom Reynolds, Gun Play.
In Gun Play, the Palm Springs Airport fountain provides a meeting spot for Doc Reynolds and his team as they search for Bocca, a sociopathic hitman, and attempt to bring him to justice. In the real city, the fountain serves as resting and cooling off spot for my favorite black Labrador retriever in town, a police dog named JAG. His handler, Officer Harvey Reed, brings JAG there for a well earned break from their full-time job protecting the passengers that fly into or out of Palm Springs Airport.
In their daily schedule, Harvey and JAG, are responsible for hundreds of confidential tasks all designed to insure your travel safety. Some of these tasks involve explosive-detection. This summer this author was privileged to watch Harvey and JAG run through a detection exercise at the airport and ride-along on a reconnaissance tour of the airport. I can assure you that I sleep better and fly with less anxiety knowing that this dedicated team and others like it are doing their jobs.
Dog lovers might wonder if JAG, with all his serious police responsibilities, is any less a contented canine. Labs happen to be my favorite dogs and I can attest that JAG is good-natured and happy and SMART!