Board rules Salt Lake cop used 'excessive force' when he ordered dog to bite burglary suspect, 14, who had his hands up as city expects possible criminal charges against more K-9 officers in coming weeks

Officer Rich Clawson ordered his dog Jaeger to attack a teen boy inside a Burger King

A Salt Lake City police officer who ordered a K-9 to bite a 14-year-old burglary suspect at a Burger King was found to have used 'excessive force' by a civilian oversight board.

The Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office is reviewing the case and other uses of dogs on criminal suspects and expects to release its findings - and possible criminal charges - in the next few weeks. 

Body camera footage from officer Rich Clawson shows the K-9 handler order his dog Jaeger to 'hit' as the boy stood on the counter with his hands in the air.

Cops responding to a call of a burglary in progress around 1am on June 5 found the teen standing on a counter and allegedly attempting to start a fire inside the fast food restaurant, which was filled with fire extinguisher smoke.

'You in the building, it's the police department. Come out or I'm going to send in the dog. You will get bit,' Clawson yells at the suspect in the video.

Another officer notes that the teen is holding a pair of scissors but tells Clawson the suspect dropped them before Jaeger was ordered to attack.   

The teen was pictured with his hands up, standing on a counter as the dog attacked

Officer Clawson told Jaeger to attack after another cop reported seeing the kid drop a pair of scissors

Clawson was seen on body camera footage holding the teen's head to the ground while ordering Jaeger to bite

Body camera footage shows Clawson rip the boy from the countertop and throw him to the ground while ordering the dog to bite him.

'Hit, hit, hit!' Clawson orders the dog, as the boy wails in pain.

Clawon then presses the boy's face into the floor as he pleads with cops, 'I'm 14 years old!'

'Stop fighting,' Clawson orders the boy as the dog's jaws clench around his leg.

'Please, please,' the boy begs with cops.

Clawson and the other officer who responded, Miles Southworth, told the Civilian Review Board that they felt ordering the dog to bite the teen was necessary, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. 

Southworth, concerned that the suspect's actions would lead to a use of deadly force, argued that ordering the dog to bite the 'aggressive' teen was a 'really good option.'

However, the board said handlers are not trained to command a dog to bite a suspect who appears to be surrendering or to hold their head down to the ground while the dog bites.

In a portion of the footage not released to the public, the review board also noted that another officer praised Jaeger as a 'good boy' after he let go of the boy, The Salt Lake Tribune reported.

Clawson told the Civilian Review Board that ordering the dog to bite the teen was necessary

Salt Lake City has suspended its K9 program after backlash from the community

Cops are trained to not praise their dogs by saying 'good boy,' according to the review board, because it can be easily construed to mean the officer 'is happy with the fact that the K-9 got to bite a subject.' 

The police department asked for the case to be reviewed by the Civilian Review Board, which posted its report online on Friday, according to the outlet.

The report has since been removed as the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office reviews the case for criminal charges, according to the outlet.  

It was revealed in August that another officer had ordered his dog Tuco to bite a black man who was on his knees and complying with police orders on April 24.

The department suspended officer Nickolas Pearce pending an investigation, and has also suspended its use of K9 units.

Cops had scrambled to the home of Jeffery Ryans, 36, and Pearce set the dog on him after neighbors allegedly heard Ryans arguing with his wife and approached him as he smoked a cigarette in his backyard.

'Get on the ground or you're going to get bit!' an officer orders.

The suspect is seen kneeling and raising his hands in the air – but cops still order Tuco to attack.

Ryans' injuries were so severe that doctors feared his leg would have to be amputated and he filed his intent to sue the department on July 20. 

Pearce faces assault charges.

District Attorney Sam Gill said it's 'definitely in the realm of possibility' that other Salt Lake officers could face criminal charges for their use of police dogs.

Gill's review of Salt Lake City's K-9 cases is almost complete, and the DA's office expects to release its findings in the next few weeks.