Police Pursuits: Law, Liability, and Department Policy

Introduction: The Dangers of Police Pursuits

The law enforcement system's need to pursue suspected lawbreakers has, perhaps, existed since the very first laws to tackle crime were written. From the era of travel on foot, to horse-riding, to today's motorized transport, it is evident that police pursuits can be highly dangerous. The year 2003 witnessed approximately 35,000 pursuits of criminals across America, with 14,000 — nearly 40% — ending in car crashes. No fewer than 50% of those 14,000 crashes resulted in injuries, and fatalities linked to police pursuits amounted to approximately 350.

The technique and manner of suspect capture, particularly with regard to automobile pursuits, has remained a matter of conflict and criticism among a large number of analysts (O'Connor and Norse). Some raise questions about the reason behind a pursuit, noting that an exceedingly large number of administrators and officers cannot articulate what they planned to do after finally catching a suspect. In the absence of a concrete plan, the hunt is likely to take on "drag race" characteristics. Onlookers have also commented that most officers' hot pursuit of suspects looks like a life-and-death situation — as though it is the very last thing they will ever do.

Although many people admire officers' dedication, they question the necessity of pursuits that endanger other motorists and pedestrians, especially when the reason behind them is often a minor traffic violation. In at least one state, not even one in five pursuits involves a felony. Court cases arising from this police activity have grown in recent years. Different states have widely differing case law, although a majority of state legislatures have adopted and implemented the Uniform Vehicle Code (UVC), which applies to emergency vehicles. In nearly all state cases examined in the relevant literature, reviewing courts have addressed the emergency vehicle statute of the state and the pursuing officers' liability exposure, liability standards, or the general applicability of those statutes to police pursuits.

Court Case: Jones v. Philadelphia

In Jones v. Philadelphia, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania rescinded the settled standard, ruling that police may be held just as liable as the fleeing driver. The case arose when a police pursuit ended with a police car crashing into the complainant's vehicle, injuring him and killing his wife. Drawing from Dickens v. Horner, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court (at the trial level) ruled that the defendants were not liable for the escaping driver's actions.

Upon appeal, the complainant argued that the pursuing officers were negligent in their conduct of the chase, that the police siren was not activated, that the municipality had been careless in maintaining its vehicles, and that the supervising officer had acted negligently by failing to terminate the chase in time (O'Connor and Norse). The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, overruling the Dickens decision, held that a jury may find defendants equally liable with a pursued driver when the defendants' negligence is a substantial contributing factor to the complainant's injuries. Consequently, a governmental entity in the State of Pennsylvania is not shielded from liability when its own negligence, in combination with that of a third party, causes harm.

References

Brown. "301.00 Emergency Vehicle Operations." The Pursuit Safety Website for Safer & Smarter Police Chases. Web. 3 Oct. 2016.

"Model Policy." The International Association of Chiefs of Police > IACP Homepage. Web. 3 Oct. 2016.

O'Connor, Patrick, and William Norse. "Police Pursuits: A Comprehensive Look at the Broad Spectrum of Police Pursuit Liability and Law." Mercer Law Review 57. Web.