Braintree Police Give Slain K-9 Kitt Final Send-Off

BRAINTREE, MA — Hundreds of police officers from around the state led a procession Tuesday for Braintree police K-9 Kitt, who was killed while protecting his handler from a man authorities said wounded two police officers in a shooting near the Braintree Village apartments.

The procession started at Cartwright Funeral Home in Braintree and made its way to Gillette Stadium in Foxborough for a private funeral limited to family, first responders and invited guests. Hundreds of community members lined up along the procession line in Braintree to pay their respects to Kitt.

Braintree Deputy Police Chief Timothy Cohoon led the funeral and said it was not only to honor Kitt's service, but the special relationship, the K-9 had with his handler Officer William Cushing Jr., one of the two officers wounded in shooting earlier this month.

"A police K-9 owner goes beyond to not only accept a professional duty, but a deeply personal duty that affects every facet of the officer's life," Cohoon said. "K-9 Kitt was a gift to Officer Cushing, to his fellow officers and by extension, the community they serve as evidence by their remarkable record of service and sacrifice."

Kitt's death came on June 4 when his handler Cushing and officers Matthew Donaghue and Richard Seibert responded to a domestic violence call involving a gun. Police said they learned the suspect, later identified as Andrew Homen, 34, of Brockton, ran from the apartment, so the officers searched the woods nearby.

After the officers got about 75 yards into the woods, Homen ambushed the officers, according to police. Police said Homen shot both Cushing and Donaghue, leaving them with serious injuries.

As Homen repeatedly fired his gun, Kitt heroically advanced towards the suspect, distracting his attention away from the officers. Kitt was shot while protecting the other officers and succumbed to his injuries.

"Kitt knew one thing and one thing only on June 4, 2021," said Rev. Paul Clifford, the chaplain for Braintree police. "There was a threat on the loose, a threat to his handler and the people of Braintree. With the backing of his handler and his guardian, Kitt answered the call to seek out, find and even neutralize the threat, and it cost him his life."

The service also involved collaboration from police departments throughout the state. Quincy police covered Braintree patrols, so officers in town could attend the funeral at Gillette Stadium. Pauline Wells, the deputy superintendent for Cambridge police, performed the National Anthem at the service.