Former OC K-9 officer declines payment for dog's surgery

OCEAN CITY -- Former Ocean City policeman Earl Campbell has declined an offer from the town to pay for a surgery Charlie, his longtime K-9 partner, had on Dec. 5, the day both left the force.
Campbell said he sent the mayor and Town Council an email thanking them, but declining, an offer the council had voted to make at a recent meeting.

"I am standing firm that I do not want any money; I just want to make sure this never happens again," Campbell said.

In his email to council members, Campbell told them he was very thankful for their kindness, but that OCPD Chief Bernadette DiPino's statement that he had never asked the department for money was accurate.

"I don't want to take money from the town that rightfully doesn't belong to me," Campbell said.
Campbell ended his relationship with the Ocean City Police Department by way of resignation Dec. 5. Campbell was upset with the way police leaders responded to his urging Charlie be retired so Campbell could assume ownership and pay for the 7-year-old German shepherd's medical care.

Council President Jim Hall brought the idea of a payment up after he said he and the council had not been aware of the happenings in the police department as they transpired, and that the council had also had nothing to do with any of the decisions that were made during the sequence of events.

"We had no part in the situation," Hall said, but since the dog was in the employ of the town at the time it got injured, he said he felt a reimbursement would be "the right thing to do."

Council members Jim Hall, Doug Cymek, Lloyd Martin and Mary Knight voted in favor of reaching out to Campbell with the offer, while Brent Ashley and Joe Hall voted against it. Margaret Pillas was absent.






Charlie is recovering from surgery to remove scar tissue that was putting pressure on his spine. Campbell said recently the dog is doing well, and has been walking.