Some police officials see high-speed chases as no-win situation

A police chase prompted by a car speeding through a Chaffee, Mo., stop sign ended tragically Sept. 23 when the pursued vehicle crashed, killing two and seriously injuring two others.

Killed were driver Garrett K. Williams, 19, of Allenville, and Debra P. Johnson, 46, of Delta. Betina M. Ott, 23, and Daniel L. Moore, 20, both of Chaffee, Mo., were critically injured and remain hospitalized.

While the chase, which reached speeds of more than 100 mph and lasted nearly 30 minutes, and subsequent accident are under investigation, the question remains: Was the pursuit necessary?

Some local police officials see pursuits as a double-edged sword or a no-win situation for police departments.

"Do you push too far?" Scott County Sheriff Rick Walter asked. "That comes up all the time."

If officers pursue a vehicle and it crashes, the police could be liable.

"We could cause the person to commit more of an offense by chasing them," Cape Girardeau County Sheriff's Department Lt. David James said.

On the other side, some officers fear that if they break off a pursuit and the vehicle still crashes, possibly injuring others, police could be blamed for not stopping the vehicle.

"If they're really drunk and they keep going, they may kill someone anyway," James said.

But one proponent for safer police pursuits disagreed with the idea that ending a pursuit could potentially lead police to be responsible for an accident.

"You could play what-ifs all night long, but if you're pursuing someone, they're driving a lot faster and recklessly than if you just let him go," John Anderson said.

Anderson, a Kansas City businessman and spokesman for the national organization campaigning for safer pursuits, PursuitWatch, said minor violations should not be sufficient cause for a high-speed pursuit.

Following the death of a friend who was fatally struck by a vehicle pursued by Kansas City, Mo., police, Anderson became the co-chair of a task force that revised the city's pursuit policy.

"There are without question occasions where pursuits are called for," Anderson said, but those pursuits should be limited to violent felonies.

"Pursuits are only allowable in cases where the risk of not pursuing is outweighed by the public good of going ahead with a pursuit," he said. Burglaries, robberies, traffic violations and thefts are no longer causes for pursuits in Kansas City, Anderson said.

James said county officers likely will not continue any pursuit for minor infractions.

"If we've got the license plate and we think we've got the identity and it's a misdemeanor-type thing, we'll probably stop the pursuit," he said.

According to Anderson, cities that have stricter policies on pursuits have fewer chases and as a result fewer injuries and accidents from pursuits.

"In most cases, you know who the guy is and you have the means to find him," he said. "It just means you may not catch him until tomorrow."

For police officers following a vehicle that refuses to pull over, a split-second decision must be made on whether to continue a pursuit.

"You have to weigh a lot of circumstances," Jackson police Lt. Rodney Barnes said. "Basically, you have to look and see if it's worth it to do this."

On many local agencies' policies for pursuits, the decision on whether to continue is left to the discretion of the commanding officer and/or the pursuing officer. Generally, to continue, state officers need to decide if the danger to public created by the pursuit is less than the danger to the public if the suspect were to get away.

Anderson said the policy he helped adopt in Kansas City eliminates possible guesswork by listing specific felonies that can prompt a pursuit.

"It's cut and dry. Either he did or he didn't," Anderson said.

In Missouri for 2005, there were 368 total chases conducted by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. Of those chases, one trooper, five pursued drivers, two pursued passengers, and two citizens were seriously injured, patrol Lt. John Hotz said. There were 32 people who received minor injuries and 152 vehicles were damaged.

In Troop E, which covers 13 counties in Southeast Missouri, the patrol initiated 27 pursuits for 2005. One driver and two passengers were seriously injured, four people received minor injuries, and 11 vehicles were damaged.

No one was killed in any of the patrol-initiated pursuits.

Of the pursuits, the majority of them were initiated by a traffic violation, including 17 in Troop E and 279 statewide, Hotz said. Only one pursuit in Troop E and a total of seven in Missouri began as a result of a violent felony.

The patrol does not keep statistics on police pursuits for other police agencies, but the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does.

In Missouri in 2003, there was a total of 13 fatalities from police pursuits. Eight of the people killed were citizens in vehicles not involved with the chase, according to the administration said. In 2004, there were only two deaths, one of whom was an occupant in a police vehicle.

Nationally, nearly a third of all deaths related to police chases were of people not initially involved in the pursuit. Of the 354 deaths in 2003, 106 were occupants in vehicles not in the chase and 13 were nonoccupants, such as pedestrians, the administrations stated.

In 2004, the numbers were similar with 108 of those killed were not involved in the chase and 12 were non occupants. The administration reported 343 people were killed in total for 2004.

The majority of the deaths were of occupants in the pursued vehicle, with 229 in 2003 and 214 in 2004, according to the administration.

In addition to spreading the word on safer pursuits, Anderson also wants to increase the penalty for someone who evades police officers. Originally it was only a misdemeanor, now it is a class D felony. He hopes to increase the crime to a class C felony, which would ensure jail time.

"For a guy running the red light, the ticket is a hell of a lot better than going to jail," Anderson said.

kmorrison@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127

By the numbers:

2003

Missouri fatalities from police pursuits:

Occupant of police vehicle: 0

Occupant of pursued vehicle: 5

Occupant of other vehicle: 8

Nonoccupant: 0

Total: 13

National fatalities from police pursuits:

Occupant of police vehicle: 6

Occupant of pursued vehicle: 229

Occupant of other vehicle: 106

Nonoccupant: 13

Total: 354

2004

Missouri fatalities from police pursuits:

Occupant of police vehicle: 1

Occupant of pursued vehicle: 0

Occupant of other vehicle: 1

Nonoccupant: 0

Total: 2

National fatalities from police pursuits:

Occupant of police vehicle: 9

Occupant of pursued vehicle: 214

Occupant of other vehicle: 108

Nonoccupant: 12

Total: 343

SOURCE: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration