It wasn’t your typical rescue call for Bentley Police Officer Matthew Doucot: a dog was locked in a car parked on campus. It was a warm summer day and there was concern about the dog’s safety as the temperature climbed. Could he help? When he arrived, Officer Matthew Doucot approached the car slowly to be sure the dog was friendly. 

“Luckily the dog was a sweet yellow lab and, even more good fortune -- the car was unlocked,” he says. “I was glad I didn’t have to break a window to rescue the dog.” 

As Officer Doucot took the friendly dog named “Mookie” out of the car, Security Officer Bill Kelly, a dog owner himself, arrived with water.  

“We walked the dog to a shady spot and gave him some water, which he clearly appreciated,” Officer Doucot says. “I then located a phone number from Mookie’s collar and had Dispatcher Shawn Ridge call the owner to meet me at the car.” 

The owner, who was dropping his daughter off for a field hockey camp, arrived shortly after and was grateful for the officers’ compassion — and for the car windows still being intact. Officer Doucot explained to the man the dangers of leaving a dog locked in a car.  

“It was a hot and humid day and even though the windows were cracked, it was very hot inside the car,” says Officer Doucot. “Considering that Mookie appeared to be well taken care of, I didn’t take any other action. The owner said he would be more conscientious and promised to be more mindful.”

Officer Doucot joined the Bentley University Police Department in 2016 after retiring with 20 years of service from the Middlesex Sheriff’s Office. For eight of those years, he was assigned to the FBI working on the North Shore Gang Task Force. He was also a reserve police officer in his hometown of Rowley, Massachusetts, for four years.  

“Campus policing can be very different than traditional municipal policing but very similar as well. Something that has stayed with me was a remark by Dean Andrew Shepardson to our department during a training session: ‘We are all educators.’ That is the approach I like to use on most calls to service, and community policing is key.”  

For Officer Doucot, being a police officer is “a calling to protect and serve.” “It is an honor to serve the Bentley community,” he says. “My goal as a police officer is to have empathy and compassion for others in need -- whether they have four legs or two.”