County Copper Ebony Duchess was born July 8, 1988 to a litter bred by Glenn Rimbey, then of Santa Fe New Mexico. She made her first, but not by any means her last, air flight at age 7 weeks into the arms of her new partner, Larry Harris of Newport Beach, California. Her destiny was to be a foundation dog of the Scent Evidence Program established by Harris for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department and she educated law enforcement, located missing persons, apprehended felons, and provided valuable investigative information for that department for 5 years.

In 1997 "Duchess", also known by her close friends as "The Silver Bullet", introduced Scent Evidence investigation techniques to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and, because of her skill and the tenacity of her handler and partner, a scent evidence program was created within that department. The success of the programs encouraged the creation of the Southern California Bloodhound Coalition by founder Larry Harris. The Coalition has since trained handlers and dogs who have gone on to successfully work criminal cases nationwide for countless agencies, including the FBI.

Duchess personally was called to work hundreds of criminal and missing persons cases for at least 24 different agencies during her illustrious career including two of the three largest police agencies in the world; LAPD and LASD.

In 1996, Duchess was awarded the prestigious "Cleopatra Award". The "Cleo" award, named after William Tolhurst’s extraordinary man-trailer, is the only award that recognizes the skills and accomplishments of the dog, not the owner-handler.

Scent Evidence, as a tool for criminal investigation, owes a great deal to Duchess whose passing on October 22, 1999 was a painful loss to so many.

Born: 7-8-1988
Passed: 10-22 (assignment cancelled) 1999

Duchess is sorely missed.

Officer Lim was in the K-9 office in the basement of the WTC and heard the explosion on an upper floor. Thinking it was a bomb that had exploded David, realizing he'd be more effective freehanded, put his K9 Sirius in the dog crate and told him to stay, he was going to investigate. "Nobody thought these buildings would fall down," "At that time, I couldn't think of a safer place for Sirius to be than in the basement while I was up doing the rescues. Of course, now, when I look back, he probably saved my life by just sitting there." Sirius perished in the tragedy, leaving David alone without his co-worker. "He's very special," said David. "All dogs go home with us. So not only was he my partner, but he was also my pet and my friend." The bond between canine and master is a special one. And while David realizes the human tragedy may overshadow the death of his dog, any pet owner can attest to the impact an animal makes on our daily lives. "We were very close. No matter where I went, he went. Whatever I asked him to do, he did. He never complained. Sometimes we'd be working for long hours, searching hundreds of cars or trucks, and he'd just look at me like, 'What do you want me to do now?".

Officer Lim stated while assisting several people down the staircase, they could hear the building collapsing. He was helping a female down the staircase when the whole building came down around them. The officer and others believe they were at about the 5th level in the stairwell that was partly standing after the collapse.