police pursuits
Its a situation seen all too often on local TV news: a speeding car, police in swift pursuit, then a sudden and often tragic ending where the victim may neither be the pursuer nor the pursued. High-speed police pursuits endanger the lives of police officers and others that may be at risk by simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time. ... Many conceive that high-speed pursuits are too dangerous and cause unnecessary deaths that other wise could have been prevented. ... Pro-pursuit experts also presume that due to the minimal or ineffective sanctions for fleeing and/or eluding police, it is leaving law enforcement relatively powerless when convicting these high-speed runners. ... However, the police officers that are in pursuit of the lawbreaker get tunnel vision just as much as the lawbreaker. That is why numerous people believe that these pursuits are just too dangerous. ... They become so engaged in “getting away” from the police that they don’t care whom they injury/kill in the process. Three hundred and fourteen people were killed in 2001 due to police pursuits. One hundred and ninety eight were being pursued, one hundred and fourteen were innocent occupants/pedestrians, and the other two were police officers doing their job by trying to protect the community. Still, by them pursuing those vehicles at a high rate of speed, did those police officers “push” those lawbreakers to run. ... There is a simple remedy in high-speed pursuits, and that is to pull over, stop and yield to lawful authority. ... These lawbreakers are usually seen pushing their speeding vehicles through crowded intersections, flying around blind corners, and weaving their way in and out of highway traffic, all in hopes of eluding the police presence that fills their rear view mirrors.