Chaffee pursuit policy similar to other agencies'

On Sept. 23, a police chase that began in Chaffee, Mo., ended when the pursued vehicle crashed off the roadway in Cape Girardeau County, killing two and critically injuring two more. According to the incident report written by the Chaffee police officer who pursued the vehicle, the car had run a stop sign at a high rate of speed. The pursuit began when the vehicle failed to pull over.

The Chaffee Police Department policy on initiating pursuits is similar to other local police agencies', relying on whether a suspect's escape presents a danger to human life.

In the Chaffee Police Department's vehicular pursuit policy, officers are instructed to initiate a pursuit only if the suspect exhibits the intention to avoid arrest by refusing to stop or when the suspect is believed to present a danger to human life or of causing serious injury.

Chaffee officer Jim Backfisch indicated in his report that the vehicle, a 1995 Oldsmobile, was traveling down the middle of the road at speeds over 100 mph.

The decision to initiate a pursuit must also be based of the officer's belief that the danger to the public created by the pursuit is less than the immediate or potential danger to the public should the suspect remain at large, the policy states.

Backfisch noted he intended to stop the vehicle and get it off the roadway to prevent injuries to other drivers.

The policy also instructs officers to take into consideration weather and environmental conditions, population density, the seriousness of the offense and whether the identity of the suspect is known.

During the Chaffee pursuit, Backfisch was able to identify the Oldsmobile's license plate and recognized the driver, Garrett K. Williams, who has a history of drug and driving while intoxicated convictions in Cape Girardeau County. Most of the pursuit occurred on rural roads, and there was no mention of other vehicles in the officer's report.

The fatal accident that killed Williams, 19, of Allenville, and passenger Debra P. Johnson, 46, of Delta, remains under investigation by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The chase is being investigated by the Scott County Sheriff's Department.

The two injured passengers remained hospitalized in critical condition. Betina M. Ott, 23, of Chaffee, was at St. Louis University Hospital and Daniel L. Moore, 20, of Chaffee, was at Saint Francis Medical Center.

Following the crash on Route U near Route N, Backfisch advised other responding officers to slow down due to wet pavement near the accident site.

The department's policy on pursuits contains many requirements that are similar to other local police agencies'.

Weighing the danger to the public of pursing a vehicle versus the danger of the suspect not being arrested is stated in the policies of Chaffee, Cape Girardeau and Jackson.

More specifically, though, Cape Girardeau's policy tells officers to consider whether the suspect committed a crime with deadly force, whether the suspect's actions create an "imminent threat" of serious bodily injury or whether the suspect is fleeing from an offense that would result in an arrest.

Likewise, Jackson's policy states that officers should initiate a pursuit if a fleeing suspect committed or attempted to commit a violent felony or if the suspect was believed to be driving while intoxicated.

As for terminating the pursuit, Chaffee's policy offers little guidance, leaving the decision to either a supervisor or the pursuing officer, asking them to continually re-evaluate the situation.

Both the Jackson and Cape Girardeau policies instruct officers to abandon the pursuit when the danger created by the pursuit outweighs the need for an arrest.

In Cape Girardeau, officers are also told to terminate a pursuit when equipment fails or the distance between the officer and the suspect is so great the chase is futile.

Jackson officers are given a list of things to consider when abandoning a pursuit, including a lack of backup, loss of reliable radio communication and adverse weather or road conditions.

kmorrison@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127