Law enforcement...regarding vehicle chases?

Question

First I would like to start off by saying "thank you" to police officers and other law enforcement officials for the work that you do. My question...police chases are obviously dangerous for a mulitude of reasons. However, it angers me every time I see some criminal on TV tooling around in a stolen car with no regard for innocent life or people's property. Unfortunately, this is becoming more common due to soft prosecution (short jail sentences, if any, and repeat offenders not being dealt with appropriately) and because the media "indirectly" glorifies those who flee. Media also seems to thrive off placing blame on the police when uninvolved (innocent citizens) are accidently killed, even though it is really the criminal's fault who fled. What do you feel would be a sufficent sentence given those who flee from police via vehicle, and what else might you recommend to reduce the amount of police pursuits while still being able to do your job of arresting criminals? Thanks.

Answer 1

Good question, I think you are very right when you say that the media indirectly glorifies the fleeing suspect. These chases creates great TV and the media thrives on "real-life" police activity, why do you think COPS has enjoyed so much success over the years?
The reality of it is that many departments have different policies when it comes to pursuits. Generally, department are turning away from high-speed pursuits because they can potentially create exponential amounts of danger.
The police have (well for the most part) had a tarnished image because of certain events that give the police profession a black eye. One incident can give EVERY officer a bad image because people generalize the police. One bad cop means all bad cops, agree?
But getting to your sentencing. Prosectution is soft on pursuit suspects because the pursuit itself probably didnt cause any death or damage, but I do believe that while most incidents do not involve this, the potential is definetely there and is very high. Its like reckless endagerment, while the intent is not there, the possibility is.
Fleeing the police is a felony (atleast in my state) and those that flee should be prosecuted to the fullest extent because they are indeed running from the law.
I agree with many departments in the way they are changing their policies because I do not believe pursuits are worth are cost/risk effective. A person with an expired tag is not dangerous until you are chasing him at 100 mph.
I hope this answer kind of helps. Its an interesting topic.

Answer 2

The safety of all innocent people should take precedence over the capture of a person fleeing in a vehicle. A person who flees should be charged with a felony with mandatory sentencing. A person in a vehicle fleeing from police is operating a 10 - 20 thousand pound bullet capable of destroying many lives. The length of the sentence should be 5 minimum mandatory as in the use of a handgun.

The criteria for pursuit should be for the following reasons only:
1. A person suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol.
2. A person leaving the scene of a serious injury or fatal collision.
3. A person who has committed a felony such as homicide, rape robbery etc.
A minor infraction such as speeding or traffic device violation should not be pursued. The officer should obtain the tag number of the vehicle then cancel the pursuit.
Through proper investigation the driver can in most cases be found and arrested.

The capture of a fleeing driver should never outweigh the price of innocence.

Answer 3

There's a difference between pursuit and HOT PURSUIT.

Most major police departments already have a hot pursuit policy. Unless the perp is considered armed and extremely dangerous, or in charge of something that can endanger a lot of people (a bus, a large truck, a tank...) and basically capable of threatening a LOT of people, or wanted for murder or similar serious offense, hot pursuit is usually NOT authorized unless it's on a freeway or somewhere public is not threatened. In other words, stolen car would be chased, but if the suspect is REALLY running for it, he would be endangering MORE people if done on city streets. Thus, police don't chase stolen cars on city streets very often. Bank robbers and such are a different story.

The officer in charge of the pursuit (usually the one who initiated it, but could be taken over by superiors) have to make the call between chasing down a suspect and weigh it against putting the public at risk.

There have been cases where the suspect sees police with lights coming up, and speeds away at 80+ MPH in residential zone. Police decided NOT to pursue and turned OFF lights and sirens... and less than 1 mile away, suspect blows through red light... and t-bones another car, and killed the driver. Sad, but true. And why did the suspect run? Because the police was chasing him. :P Often the suspect feels no regret. To him, HE was the victim. :P

Personally, I would suggest developing special tracking darts that can be fired from a moving vehicle, probably roof-mounted rotating launcher on top of police cruisers. Upon seeing a suspect, you shoot a tracking dart and have it embed in the trunk or something, and serves as a bright flashing marker. Suspect can't get rid of it without getting out of the car, pull it out, and toss it. And it can't be that hard to make it almost impossible to pull out without special tools.

I believe some European police have tested a hood-mounted harpoon that can be used to ram suspect cars, and penetrate the trunk area and basically hold it still. It can even inject tear gas into the suspect car forcing them to spot. I don't know what became of that invention.

What's REALLY needed is that fictional "harpoon" used in 2 Fast 2 Furious. :) But that's fictional and probably a long-way off. Or that EMP pulse cannon from that old series VIPER or even KITT's microjam. :)

Answer 4

As a prosecutor, I've struggled with this one. Every one of my felony prosecutions for Fleeing an Officer in a Motor Vehicle have either involved a driver who is drunk, on meth, or mentally ill. I haven't seen a sober one yet (at least one that lasted more than a mile). Most end up pleading guilty with additional jail time over and beyond what they would get for the original DWI/DUI. A few have gotten prison time only because their criminal history score warranted it. The sentences for the mentally ill cases range from nothing to perhaps something whenever we can find them. For some reason, they seem to scatter quicker than the chemically dependent.

Answer 5

car chases wern't all that popular until OJ decided he was gonna run and went on a slow speed chase and all the media got a collective hard on and plastered it on the news for like a week. i believe air cover is the best defense to these chases. most time the fleeing person doesn't realize there is a chopper on them. people are always gonna try to run from the police until the end of time. the only thing we can do as officers is try not to escalate the situation while at the same time end it as soon as possible. some departments are simply terminating pursuits sooner and sooner because its not worth the risk and the criminal will most likely get caught again if they were dumb enough to get caught the first time

Answer 6

The sentencing is up to a judge based on the state's guidelines so I do not feel it appropriate to determine that here. In rural ares it should not be as harsh. In populated areas it should be much harsher and less open to parole and time off for good behavior.

As to minimizing pursuits, the police should have a lo-jack gun which can shoot a tracking device at the car and attaches to the rear. This device would then activate and let the police know where and when the car turns up.

It's not science fiction, it's available now and is being used in many cities.

Answer 7

in cities where the cops have helicopters, there is NO NEED for a dangerous chase that can end in innocent life being lost. You cannot escape a police helicopter no matter how hard you try, the suspect can be tailed at a distance where they do not realize they are being followed.

Answer 8

man, by the title of this question i thought maybe you were asking because you wawnted to steal a car........i am very dissapointed.

Answer 9

I just want to respond to your first two lines.

You're welcome, and thank you.