Search & Rescue Unit

The SAR unit in DeSoto County Mississippi is well-prepared and skilled to assist the local community. They undergo training in various environments including water, wilderness, and urban areas. Their expertise lies in locating missing individuals, collecting evidence, providing aid during disasters, assisting in victim recovery, and offering assistance on marine vessels. Additionally, the SAR unit actively engages with the community by participating in events like career days, trunk or treat events, fall festivals, and Christmas parades.

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K-9 Unit


The DCSO SAR K-9 Unit is comprised of a dedicated team of handlers and their canine partners. The unit takes pride in being nationally certified in tracking, trailing, evidence recovery, and human remains detection. The team members have more than 35 combined years of experience handling dogs in these capacities as well as numerous certifications in all aspects of criminal investigations and odor diffusion. 

In addition to working calls, one team member is an instructor for various law enforcement seminars and conferences teaching proper canine handling, odor diffusion, obedience, aggression control, and proximity alerts.

The team has proudly solved numerous high-profile crimes, recovered many deceased individuals, located lost and missing persons, and saved several lives. When not working the streets, they can be found amongst the citizens of the county at all the local festivities, parades, and within groups of special needs children. 

 

 

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Dive team

Our Dive team is composed of six extensively trained individuals who are certified in lifeguarding, water safety instruction, full face mask certification, drysuit certification, open water certification, advanced dive certification, rescue dive certification, and ERD 1 public safety certification. They have the necessary skills and knowledge to recover various items, such as vehicles, weapons, and even bodies. Moreover, the dive team devotes around 15 hours each month to intensive training sessions.

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Swiftwater Rescue Team

We have a team of 10 members dedicated to Swiftwater rescue. Each member brings a unique background, including expertise from the Dive team, lifeguards, water safety instructors, rope technicians, and medical personnel. Seven of our team members are certified at Swiftwater level one, while the remaining three have achieved level two certification. Every year, our team undergoes certification training on the Ocoee river in Tennessee.


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 Alpha Class 

The unit conducts an annual recruit class starting in August and ending in November. Following the completion of the fifty-hour class, recruits undergo a live scenario assessment before being admitted to the unit.   SAR Application

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