Utah Officer Injured During K-9 Training

A Mapleton, Utah, officer was seriously injured Wednesday during a K-9 training exercise in Spanish Fork.

According to Chief John Jackson with the Mapleton Police Department, officer Rebekah Hatch was in regular training with fellow K-9 officers from multiple jurisdictions at the Spanish Fork Fairgrounds. She wore a bite suit to portray a suspect during the exercise, and fell and hit her head after a Utah County Sheriff’s Office K-9 lunged and latched onto her, KSL reports.

Chief Jackson did not go into detail about Hatch’s injuries but said Hatch was in the hospital and would not be returning to work anytime soon. He said the dog acted as expected during the exercise and would not likely face any further scrutiny following what he described as a “training accident.”