VIDEO: BCSO Swears In New Bloodhound To K9 Unit
By Space Coast Daily // May 29, 2014
BCSO received more than 8,000 name suggestions
ABOVE VIDEO: Brevard County Sheriff’s Office announces the name of the newest blood hound in the K9 unit. The name chosen was “Junny,” in honor of Junny Rios Martinez, a local boy who was kidnapped and murdered in 1991. That case led to passage of the Junny Rios-Martinez Act of 1992, which prohibits sex offenders from early release from prison
BREVARD COUNTY • TITUSVILLE, FLORIDA — Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey held a special ceremony on Wednesday at his Titusville, Florida complex where he recognized and honored new and promoted members of his Brevard County Sheriff’s Office team.
During the ceremony, Ivey also announced the new name of the latest member of the BCSO Canine Unit.
Following is a statement from a release from the Brevard County’s Sheriff Office:
On behalf of the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, we would like to personally thank the thousands of people who participated in the “Name Our Puppy” contest.
We are truly amazed by the overwhelming volume of support in helping us name the newest member of our Agency.
Incredibly, over 700,000 people were reached through the contest by our social media Facebook page and on-line reporting. We received over 8,000 name suggestions that were each unique in their own way.
Our team reviewed the impressive list of names and officially announced the winning name and identity of the person who submitted the entry this afternoon at a Sheriff’s Office Promotional Ceremony.
One of the names submitted was very unique and unanimously liked by the entire selection committee. The name was submitted by Raquel Santana, a Brevard County student who was the first of six who submitted the selected name.
At today’s ceremony, “Junny” was introduced as the winning submission and officially named the newest member of our agency.
Junny is a 14-week-old Bloodhound. The name was submitted in honor of 11-year-old Junny Rios-Martinez, who was abducted and tragically taken from us in April 1991. Junny was a sixth-grader who loved his family, baseball and surfing.
Junny’s parents, Vicki and Junny along with other members of the family joined us today as the puppy was officially pinned his Sheriff’s Star.
The Rios-Martinez family has remained active in the support of victim’s and children’s rights and was instrumental in the passage of the Junny Rios-Martinez Act of 1992, which prohibits sex offenders from early release from prison.
Sheriff Wayne Ivey stated, “I would like to personally thank everyone who participated in the contest and let them know how much the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office appreciates the incredible support and encouragement we received from our community. To watch the enthusiasm of Raquel as she officially announced the name as Vicki placed the Sheriff’s Star on Junny was one of those moments in life we will always remember.”
Junny was donated to the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office by the Jimmy Ryce Foundation in support of K-9 programs for the search and recovery of missing and endangered children.
BELOW VIDEO: Sheriff Wayne Ivey honors new and promotes current members of Brevard County Sheriff’s Office.
BELOW VIDEO: Vicki Rios-Martinez comments on the name chosen in honor of her late son, Junny.
