Policeman Siccing a K-9 on an Innocent Man rocks the Serenity of Lake Oswego in Oregon

LAKE OSWEGO, Ore — The peaceful and picturesque city of Lake Oswego in Oregon’s Clackamas County has captured headlines not for its upscale lifestyle and serene lake but for the firing of a police officer who commanded his K-9 to attack an innocent man.

Officer Erich Mayr Fired After Nine Years of Service with the Police Force

Officer Erich Mayr (37) served Lake Oswego for nine years. He was fired after an investigation by Lt. Jacob Jones and other officers who found that Mayr had sicced his K-9 on a man who was not a criminal suspect and then lied about the incident when questioned.

Mayr was fired by the Oswego Police Chief last December and has refused to comment.

The decision followed an event on June 16, 2023, when Mayr commanded his dog, Szemi, to “fas, fas, fas,” the order to bite Jose Manuel Soto-Nene Jr., hiding in bushes alongside a sidewalk. The K-9 bit the man in the buttocks and punctured his arm.

The investigation also focused on why Mayr had not activated his body camera to record the incident.

Incident Occurred near Happy Valley

Mayr and Szemi were called to an unincorporated area near Happy Valley and ordered to assist deputies from the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Department to track down a suspect who has crashed his car and escaped on foot. The passenger – Soto-Nene Jr – had also run away but was not suspected of any crime.

The investigation found that Mayr had tracked down the passenger hiding in bushes near Southeast Bob Schumacher Road and Old Town Court. Investigators found that Mayr should have been aware that the man was the passenger, yet he had issued the “fas, fas, fas” command. Szemi bit the man in the buttocks and punctured his arm.

In his response to the investigators, Mayr said: “Law-abiding citizens with nothing to hide… do not run from police.” He also said that he ordered Szemi to bite the man because Soto-Nene had grabbed the dog in the face. Soto-Nene has no criminal record in Oregon, nor has he been charged with any crimes related to the June 16 event.

Investigators found that Mayr’s reasoning did not justify his action to set the dog on the man. Mayr said that the man had grabbed Szemi on the face, but a video recorded on a body camera of another law enforcement officer showed Soto-Nene raise his arms in defense to protect himself from the dog.

After the incident, Soto-Nene received treatment at a local hospital and has not filed a lawsuit against Lake Oswego City.

The driver was later found in the vicinity and surrendered to the police. No further information regarding the man or any charges was made available in public records.

Mayr’s Answers Under Questioning had Little Credibility

Investigators dismissed Mayr’s explanation of why he had not activated his body camera. Mayr said he believed his camera would automatically activate. Lt. Jones countered that Mayr knew that the camera had to be manually activated, an action that Mayr had executed on numerous prior occasions.

Another investigator, Captain Clayton Simon, found “little credibility” in Mayr’s answers. Simon found Mayr unable or unwilling to recognize his mistakes or to accept responsibility for his actions, making his employment as a police officer at Lake Oswego City “unsustainable.”

Police Chief George Burke says police officers must be “upfront, truthful, and honest” if public trust is to be maintained. He confirmed that Szemi is back working with a new handler, adding that the dog had done what he was trained and ordered to do.

EDITOR’S NOTE:

The incident was initially disclosed by The Oregonian after filing a public records request.