Car chases?

Question

what should the law be on car chases how much should the cops persue them before letting them go? or should they let them go at all.

Answer 1

Pursuits are something that is always in the back of your mind as an officer, you really have to use your judgment and a lot of the times, your pride is likely to get in the way....If I wanted to initiate a traffic stop for speeding 10 over, and it's traffic hour with cars all over the place, I'll probably let it go, cause I don't want to plow my unit into the back of another car, possibly carrying a family, if it's 2 AM, no one on the street but me and the guy, I'll give chase for a couple of miles, unless the guy's driving like he's wasted, then it's on......and I wouldn't slam my unit into the guy in order to stop him cause 1. the chief would have my butt, 2. I don't want to wind up in a wheel chair, of course unless he killed someone and was en route to kill someone else, it's real hard to answer a question like that, it's like asking "will you risk someone's life in order to catch a POSSIBLE criminal, or will you kill someone to save another person......just real hard to answer, most departments (like mine) have guide lines only, and we go by the emergency vehicle laws, mostly exempt from most traffic regulations as long as operator can proceed with due regard and care for life and property.....

Answer 2

Okay, guys, Car Chases.... That's an interesting quandry. I would like to start out saying, car chases in law enforcement are picky subjects. At my department, we are not allowed to pursue, except in a case when it is a violent felony and an unidentified perp. But there's a variety of things involved.

First I have to request permission from my supervisor.
Second, I have to proceed with due regard for the safety of others.

If I make a single mistake, that either causes the death of someone else or even serious injury. I lose the statutory exemption of the law, and can even be brought up on charges. Such as criminally negligent homicide or involuntary manslaughter.

And even if I do not get found criminally liable, I can be civilly liable in a wrongful death suit and get sued for everything I'm worth.

Answer 3

Unless law enforcement is 100% certain that the person in a car has committed a felony, it should be ILLEGAL for them to pursue someone. If you ever watch COPS or any of the other shows on television, there are young kids that are afraid of stopping and end up killing innocent people in high speed chases. In fact, MOST of the high speed chases are just people that would be charged with minor misdemeanors but they get frightened and run. Most cops I know just love to drive fast and take it personally when someone runs from them. They really don't care if they kill me or you in the process just as long as the 17 year old with a busted tail light is caught.

Answer 4

That's a question that's been debated so many times. What's the answer? Who knows.

The police are sworn to uphold the law. And when they see a crime that is committed they are supposed to act on it. But when the crime is a mere traffic infraction...then how do you justify it? But then you don't know if that person has committed another crime. It's a Catch-22 at best.

I feel that the police have an obligation to protect and serve. This includes trying to catch bad guys for crimes they commit. I say that having a policy which outlines the types of pursuits and the manner to carry them out would be sufficient. Having a standard which the department and officer can fall back on is the simplest way to avoid a lawsuit.

Furthermore, I feel that if the citizens got involved in reporting crime from the beginning it could alleviate many of the problems.

Answer 5

The law should be that whatever happens during or as a result of the chase is the fault of the criminal that chose to flee the police and lead them on the chase.

But the liberals would never stand for that, they think the cop should just let the criminals go if they do not want to be arrested.

Answer 6

Cops are supposed to chase after and catch the bad guys. That's their job. The bad guys, already law breakers, are violating the law when the run. Put the blame on the bad guys, not the police.

Answer 7

dino rules. Car chases are probably responsible for more deaths and injuries than assaults on law enforcement officials. The Feds should mandate chase guidelines and bust those who flaunt the rules. Our law enforcement community has its cowboys and we need to constantly rein them in........................