“Though he hasn’t been with us long,” added Flowers, “he really made a big impression.” Mangel and Joker had started March 8 to complete their 480-hour Patrol K9 School training, officials said. Joker, officials said, “excelled in every evolution of training he was taught and progressed to the point that he would have had the ability to certify under the (Florida Department of Law Enforcement) state guidelines even though he was only half way through school.” Joker was one of three K-9s undergoing training to work alongside deputies to perform criminal apprehension and assist in the agency’s narcotics division and bomb squad.