REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
December 16, 2025
FROM
SHANNON D. DICUS, Sheriff/Coroner/Public Administrator
SUBJECT
Title
Acceptance of Donation of One Electronic Storage Device Detection Canine from Our Rescue
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
1. Accept the donation of one Electronic Storage Device Detection Canine, from Our Rescue, a non-profit organization, with an estimated total value of $32,668.
2. Approve Memorandum of Understanding with Our Rescue, a non-profit organization, to establish the terms and responsibilities in relation to the donation of one Electronic Storage Device Detection Canine listed in Recommendation No. 1, for the period of November 2, 2025, through November 1, 2030.
(Presenter: Carolina Mendoza, Chief Deputy Director, 387-0640)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Improve County Government Operations.
Operate in a Fiscally-Responsible and Business-Like Manner.
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
Pursue County Goals and Objectives by Working with Other Agencies and Stakeholders.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The donation of one Electronic Storage Device Detection Canine (ESD K9) to the Sheriff/Coroner/Public Administrator (Department) by Our Rescue, a 501(c)(3), not-for-profit organization, has an estimated value of $32,668, which includes the cost of the ESD K9, initial training and certification, handler’s lodging, travel expenses, equipment and vehicle kennel. Additionally, the donation includes annual certification expenses for the ESD K9, annual veterinary check-ups, and a monthly food allowance for the five-year term of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The assigned ESD K9 handler is a current Department sworn employee.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The Department is the primary law enforcement agency for San Bernardino County, including several contracted cities throughout the county, and delivers public safety and professional law enforcement services to the community through staff assigned to various divisions and patrol stations. One of those divisions is the Specialized Investigations Division, that includes the Crimes Against Children (CAC) Detail. The CAC’s specializes in the investigation of child sexual and physical abuse cases, child sex rings, child pornography, child exploitation, internet crimes against children and other types of crimes that involve children.
Our Rescue’s mission is to end sex trafficking and child exploitation in the United States and other parts of the world, while providing survivors of those crimes with care and resources to rebuild their lives. The organization partners with law enforcement agencies to help identify and rescue victims of those crimes, and to secure the evidence necessary to prosecute and convict criminal traffickers and abusers. One of their programs sponsors the acquisition, training and subsequent donation of ESD K9s that are used during search warrants conducted by law enforcement agencies to “sniff out” hidden devices like data cards, external computer hard drives, and tablets that could potentially contain evidence of child sexual abuse material. The ESD K9s are trained to detect a chemical scent found in the glue of the devices, that may be otherwise difficult for investigators to locate due to their small size.
The recommended MOU with Our Rescue establishes the terms, roles and responsibilities of the parties to work collaboratively employing the donated ESD K9 for the period of November 2, 2025, through November 1, 2030. The windows for the specialized K9 training are available only a few times during each year, with the last one for 2025 starting on November 2, 2025. The next available session is scheduled for March 2026. To avoid the additional 4 ½-month wait until the next session, and to be able to deploy the ESD K9 to help during investigations as soon as possible, the Department sent the assigned handler to the November 2, 2025, training session. For those reasons, the Department’s request to accept and approve the MOU, on a retroactive basis, is being presented to the Board of Supervisors (Board) on the earliest available date after completion of the required review process.
To support the work of the CAC, the Department recommends the Board’s acceptance of the donation of one ESD K9 and approval of the MOU with Our Rescue.
County Policy Standard Practice 06-01SP requires departments to obtain Board approval to accept any donation valued over $10,000.
PROCUREMENT
Not applicable.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Miles Kowalski, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on November 10, 2025; and County Finance and Administration (Erika Rodarte, Administrative Analyst, 387-4919) on November 21, 2025.