The deaths of innocent bystanders connected to high-speed police chases, such as the one in Augusta last week, have police agencies across the nation re-examining pursuit policies.
Last week, Laura Felder, 42, was killed when the car in which she was a passenger was struck by another vehicle fleeing police in a high-speed chase, authorities said.
Last year, 404 people were killed during such chases -- the highest number since 1982, according to statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Ms. Felder died, police said, after a Chevy Blazer driven by Jamie Ray Clark struck her vehicle. Mr. Clark, who was being chased by Richmond County sheriff's Deputy Anthony Gregory, had fled after being stopped for running a traffic light in the 1200 block of Broad Street.
Changing pursuit policy is a decision each department has to make, and when the public is harmed during a chase, it's one they may need to re-examine, according to Dr. Frank Rivara, of the Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center in Seattle, Wash., and coauthor of the study, "Motor Vehicle Crash Deaths Related to Police Pursuits in the United States."
The study, completed in 2004, examined nine years of National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration statistics and found that in many cases, innocent bystanders make up a significant portion of those injured during police pursuits. From 1994 to 2002, there were more than 3,000 fatalities from crashes related to police pursuits -- 1,088 of which were people not in the fleeing vehicle.
"I think it comes down to a societal cost effectiveness," Dr. Rivara said. "Does the risk to the citizens of the community justify the permission by police to do chases and are there ways for making sure these chases are not done for non-violent criminals?"
Sheriff Ronnie Strength maintains that his officers need the ability to pursue suspects, especially in situations like those Deputy Gregory faced.
But several Southeastern police departments have adopted strict vehicular pursuit policies that make it tougher for officers to hit the gas once the bad guy flees.
Col. Jennifer Kindall, of the Spartanburg Public Safety Department, said their decision to limit police pursuits was in direct response to the number of pursuit deaths across the nation.
Officers at the Peachtree City Police Department, southwest of Atlanta, may only initiate pursuit "in those situations when failure to do so would constitute the likelihood of imminent threat of serious bodily harm to the officer(s) or others," according to the department's standard operating procedure. And in Macon, Bibb County Sheriff's Lt. George Meadows said he believes departments across the nation are looking for alternatives to the classic high-speed chase..
Still, these departments are the exception to the norm.
Sheriff Strength points out that most departments across the nation are hesitant to place these kind of restrictions of their officers.
"These things, as much as we hate them, they do happen and nothing we say can change it once it has happened," Sheriff Strength said.
Reach Adam Folk at (706) 823-3339 or adam.folk@augustachronicle.com.
TO CHASE OR NOT TO CHASE
THE PROS
- Chases take violators "off the streets."
- They may lead to other arrests. For instance, a deputy stops a driver for running a red light and discovers he is wanted in a recent bank robbery.
- They an act as a deterrent to those wanting to run.
- Speeders may be emboldened if not chased.
Source: Richmond County Sheriff Ronnie Strength
THE CONS
- Chases place the lives of the public, officers and suspects in danger.
- A large number of fleeing criminals are non-violent offenders who committed misdemeanors. Many argue that they could be apprehended later.
- While law enforcement emphasizes that chases are a deterrent, others point out that suspects continue to flee despite the widespread ability of departments to pursue them.
Source: Candy Parino, Director of Voices Insisting on PursuitSAFETY, Dr. Frank Rivara, Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center.
MAN SUES POLICE OVER 2006 WRECK
The husband of a Martinez woman killed during a 2006 wreck has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Columbia County Sheriff's Office.
The suit claims that a deputy disregarded department pursuit policy by chasing two shoplifting suspects on Washington Road to the intersection at Bobby Jones Expressway, where they crashed into a Chrysler Cirrus driven by Lonnie D. Turner.
Mr. Turner, 37, his mother, Margaret Patricia Branton, 63, and Mr. Turner's unborn child were killed June 4, 2006, when Tiara Maria Smith drove her Ford Explorer through a red light at the intersection and struck the Cirrus, according to a police report.
Atlanta attorney Richard W. Hendrix filed the suit in the Columbia County Clerk of Court's office on Feb. 5 on behalf of John J. Branton.
-- Valerie Rowell, staff writer
BY THE NUMBERS
Fatalities in Motor Vehicle Crashes Involving Police in Pursuit - 2006
South Carolina
Occupant of police vehicle: 0
Occupant of chased vehicle: 11
Occupant of other vehicle: 3
Georgia
Occupant of police vehicle: 0
Occupant of chased vehicle: 13
Occupant of other vehicle: 2
National
Occupant of police vehicle: 3
Occupant of chased vehicle: 268
Occupant of other vehicle: 122
Source: National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration
The Augusta Chronicle ©2010. All Rights Reserved.
Ronnie Strength: YOU need to adjust your thinking to the times. This isn't 1888, Wild West Days. The kid ran a red light, for God's sake. He didn't rob a bank.
That deputy should be fired and YOUR offic should be sued.
Any time you see a blue light stop. If your run, it should be a mandatory 5 years with no chance of parole. If a misdemeanor violator risks 5 years of his life, the odds are there's more to the chase then a misdemeanor. The option is no pursuit. Wouldn't that remove the need for those expensive blue lights.
It's the police mentality that affects their policy making-that's why it's critical that citizens exercise their rights when selecting leadership of law enforcement. What's next? Media blitz with police saying, " a change of policy is being soft on crime & we gotta go after them where ever they go." And with this bunch in charge, given local media & uneducated populace, the chase policy in the CSRA will stay the same. In the real world, a huge settlement from taxpayers' pockets would effect a policy change. But because the judges/courts/jury are rigged here, the damages will be small, or not big enough to send a clear message. And of course, many states have long abandoned such reckless policies which take innocent lives, because they understand that the life saved maybe YOUR love ones or maybe even U.
patricia, you're rambling agian. Drug dealers and murders get less than that at times. AND sliigue, I'm RIGHT WITH YOU. And how old was this OVER ZEALOUS cop, in his twentlys or something?
The cop did what he was sworn to do, protect and serve. You have to draw the line, blue light means stop. Everyone is assuming this dummy would have been driving safely when he went through that intersection if the police were'nt chasing him. Hello, he ran a red light and got pulled over to begin with, sounds like a safe driver to me. Lose the "police are out to get us" mentality and join the grown ups.
You can put all of the maybes, should haves, could haves, and guesses away, a person was killed by a boy running from a traffic violation and at some point law enforcement needs rules of when to break off a chase. While the death of this mother is terrible, it could have been an entire family, with small children in that accident. There is too much traffic on the highways to be doing a fast speed chase. The officer had all the information he needed in this case. Local law enforcement are now buying Dodge Charger cars that will run in excess of 170 MPH, which is riduclous for inside a city. Add a large sentence for people that try to run.
First things first. If the kid didn't flee. We wouldn't be talking about this. End of story.
Only one reason to run from the PoPo, To HIDE something...
If Mr. Turner sues Ms. Smith dor her killing 3 people; he might be able to collect on her welfare checks. The fleeing suspect is absolutely, 100% at fault. Period.
The deputy was told to call off the chase...twice! He said he didn't hear the command because of the sirens/radio traffic/whatever. That, in itself, is a problem! If that's the case, how many other commands has he failed to hear??? This was a senseless chase...he had ALL this guys information in the patrol car with him...he said so himself! Did he hear the command to call off the chase...probably, but we'll never know for sure. The policy needs to be revamped for sure. It's sad this woman lost her life due to an adrenaline rush of some punk & a cop proving a point! May she rest in peace & her family get justice!
Most runners have only broken traffic laws. About 40% of all high speed chases will result in a crash. That is way too dangerous. Many departments are initiating policies that limit chases to known life threatening situations. Those cities, such as Orlando, do have an increase in drivers running from blue lights. The public should not be put at risk this way.
There should already be a policy in place concerning when and when not to pursue. Talk all you wish about what this person might have done later, the bottom line is that the initial stop was for a minor traffic violation. It was determined after the fact that this person may have been DUI. No rational person is saying that there are not situations where a pursuit is warranted, but common sense along with established policy, should come into play.
"Mr. Turner, 37, his mother, Margaret Patricia Branton, 63, and Mr. Turner's unborn child were killed June 4, 2006," Then how is he filing a lawsuit if he is dead? Again AC's proofreading at its finest.
AV, personally, I'd fine something less painful for that family to proofread and reprint than that line. I'm sure Mr. Turner is reading this article.
HEMI, maybe you just need to worry about your OWN welfare check. Every other posters on here are at least trying to have a serious debate and then you bring your mental midget behind on here with that B.S.
It won't be very painful when he gets millions for the lawsuit. Why are they suing the officer? If the criminals wouldn't run then chases would not be needed. As I said before, Jeffrey Dahmer was stopped for a broken taillight and Timothy McVain (sp?) was stopped for speeding. How small is a traffic violation in those cases? Small things can lead to much larger issues. If you are an upstanding citizen then you would not break the law, period. If you do the "petty" crimes then you are just a capable as those who I mentioned above. Breaking the law is breaking the law no matter how you slice it!
And I did say capable not willing. I do believe some people have a bit of sense.
To clarify the officer was told to stop the chase once the driver (Mr. Clark) reached the state line. Mr. Clark made a right hand turn heading toward Gordon Hwy. the officer was following orders. Like I have said before the kid is at fault, people. The officer was doing his job. A mother/sister/friend lost her life. Instead of arguing over the petty crap of who is at fault we should be asking what can we do for the family.
FedUP.....You are incorrect. The deputy was NOT told to "end the chase." The command was to "end the chase at THE STATE LINE." You may want to go back, listen to the audio tape, then edit your remarks.
Sliique.....Not everyone in Augusta is uneducated. I have a college degree (from LSU), my husband has a college degree, my brother has 2 college degrees, and my mother has 3 college degrees. There are many educated people in Augusta. I'm not sure about my mother, but my brother, husband & I fully support this deputy, the department and the chase. Maybe you shouldn't just assume everyone in Augusta who supports this deputy/department is uneducated.
Patricia.....I agree. There should be a stiff mandatory sentence for fleeing an officer. That would deter many criminals & likely save many lives.
Sure the fleeing suspect is at fault and should have vehicular manslaughter (at a minimum) charges added onto whatever else they get him for. That doesn't change the fact...YES FACT, that the officer was reckless, negligent and insubordinate. I almost always side with law enforement but I find it a bit too coincidental and convenient that he didn't hear the order to break off the chase. The officer should be fired and the sheriff's department should make no effort to cover for him. I understand sticking up for your guys. But sticking by someone when they are so obviously wrong is the kind of thing that creates the mistrusful attitude a lot of people have toward cops.
All that said...yes I agree you need to persue most of the time because everyone would run if they knew they wouldn't be chased. I agree with a stiff mandatory sentence as Patricia proposed. Five years sounds just fine to me.
4 officers did not hear the command to break off the chase. Not just 1. You can hear 4 different unit numbers being called over the radio, 332, 401, 406 and 328. Also a dispatcher who told the pursuing units that she was sending "southside" (Not southbound as WRDW stated) units to the chase also. Coincidental and convenient? Try again.
patriciathomas you are so "shallow", the blue lights aren't just for pursuits, they mean pull over. And we don't have to think the police is out to get us to conclude this was a senseless tragedy. He had his information he should have backed off. And I don't think they should stop chasing those who flee, just know when to back off.
To all who propose a mandatory sentence for fleeing the police, One question. How you gonna charge them when you can't chase them and catch them?
The truth is, if the deputy had let they guy run and the guy hit someone & killed them (remember, he was DUI), you can BET the SAME FOOLS on hear would have a different story.., SUE THE DEPUTY FOR NOT DOING HIS JOB. Angie.., I have NEVER read a positive post from you. All you do is trash people. You are seen for what you are.
And PT I still need the blue lights on top of my car to keep you from running over the downed power lines in the road after a heavy storm. I am done listening to this bash the police crap. I have to sleep now so that I can protect those of you who hate us at 3 in the morning while you get to sleep in your comfy bed with your significant other. I have to leave my spouse and children every day to protect all citizens whether you like me or not. Remember the trash you talk about all police the next time you want me to do a report because someone took your car or you lost your pink flamingo from the front yard!
I like PT's proposal mandating 5 year penalties for fleeing after being stopped by police. If a non-violent offender still flees, then perhaps they deserve to be jailed for 5 years. AV, if a vehicle is stopped, presumably the officer would get the license number of the vehicle before it flees which in most cases would lead to the perpetrator. Still, it's a shame that innocent bystanders ever get harmed by this sort of thing.
NotyourDadsBuick, the tag thing doesn't work as well as most think. Tags come back all the time to wrong addresses because people don't get them updated, or they have cars registered by their friends and family they don't live near, they loan out their cars to god knows who for whatever reason and if the car/ tag is stolen how am I supposed to catch them? That is also presuming that the prep stop in the first place. Most don't. I hit the blue lights and they launch themselves to oblivion!