Editorial

A fine line

The investigation of a high-speed pursuit by a Chaffee police officer that ended in two deaths and critical injuries to two others is continuing.

The incident has focused considerable attention on such chases with opinions about equally divided.

One side believes good law enforcement would be jeopardized if lawbreakers knew police wouldn't chase speeding vehicles.

The other side believes the risk to human life is too great to warrant most high-speed chases.

The line between good law enforcement and protecting lives in situations like this is not only thin, it is subject to so many other factors that can only be taken into account in the few seconds an officer has to decide whether to give chase.

But it's not just a police officer's decision that has an effect of whatever outcome a high-speed chase might have.

Anyone who chooses to flee when an officer turns on sirens and flashing lights has made a life-threatening decision. And, as in the chase that started in Chaffee, the health and lives of three other individuals were put at extreme risk.

Failure to obey laws and the instructions of a law-enforcement officers can be, as we have tragically seen in recent days, a life-and-death decision.

At the same time, many law-abiding citizens are struggling with what they would choose to do if confronted with that thin line between pursuit or no pursuit.

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