‘A member of our family’: Monument honoring fallen police dog Hudson unveiled in St. Charles

A new monument honoring a fallen police dog will serve as a daily reminder of his sacrifice for everyone working at the Kane County sheriff’s office.

The ceremonial unveiling of the monument to Hudson, a Dutch shepherd that was killed in the line of duty last year, happened Friday near the employee entrance of the sheriff’s office in St. Charles.

“It’s going to be pretty special to see it every day as a reminder of what he did in the service of the county and all the work he and I put in together,” said his handler, Det. Luke Weston. “It’s a good representation of what Hudson gave to the department.”

Four-year-old Hudson died on May 24, 2023, while apprehending an armed carjacking suspect who had led police on a high-speed chase in a stolen vehicle. The chase ended at Fabyan Parkway and Randall Road on the Geneva-Batavia border, where the suspect engaged in a shootout with police.

Hudson had gripped the arm of the suspect, later identified as 38-year-old James Moriarty of Aurora, when he was fatally shot during an exchange of gunfire. Moriarty also was killed.

“This is a very meaningful time for us because this is a member of our family,” Sheriff Ron Hain said. “(Hudson) gave his life in the protection of others, which is the entire core of what we do here at the Kane County sheriff’s office.”

Hain said Hudson was utilized for more than 100 tracks of criminal offenders and missing people in his brief two-year career, as well as the apprehension of several violent offenders, assisting in the detection and seizure of over $5 million in proceeds from illicit activities and over 100 kilograms of narcotics.

Hain noted that the numbers don’t tell the whole story of Hudson’s contributions to the force.

“We are unable to determine how many times K-9 Hudson’s mere presence prevented violent encounters between criminals and members of law enforcement, which is really most notably what police canines are all about,” Hain said.

Sgt. Nick Wolf, who heads up the department’s police dog unit, trained Hudson.

“I think the monument came out perfect,” Wolf said. “I couldn’t be more proud of Luke and the dog.”

The sheriff’s office paid for the monument with asset forfeiture funds from the K-9 nonprofit fundraising account.

Following the event, the Elgin Kennel Club made a surprise donation of $2,000 to the program.

“We just appreciate what they do,” Juanita Kocamda of EKC said.

https://www.dailyherald.com/20240913/news/a-member-of-our-family-monument-honoring-fallen-police-dog-hudson-unveiled-in-st-charles/