By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Hutchinson Police Chief Jeff Hooper explained that whether or not to continue a chase of a suspect in a vehicle is a decision that is dependent on circumstances.
"What the law says when we are pursuing a suspect is that, if the reason for pursuit, so the reason that we're trying to stop them, if the danger of the pursuit outweighs that reason, then we should terminate that pursuit, is typically the guidance."
Therefore, someone guilty of a person felony would likely be chased further and with more allowed risk than someone who has only committed a traffic offense and has no outstanding warrants.
"This has been an emphasis in our department over about the last six months," Hooper said. "We have really reviewed our pursuit policy and the application of that policy. There's been a couple pursuits here of late that have concerned me. We're young. We're very young. I have officers that have never been in a pursuit before. Every one of those pursuits, we review it from the sergeant level, the lieutenant level, my operations commander and all the way up to me, review every aspect of that pursuit to determine whether it was in policy, whether its a training issue and we try to improve on that and then we review it with those supervisors who have the overall command of that pursuit."
It's important that anyone who commits an offense knows that they may be held accountable.
"I have not implemented a no pursuit policy, because then you encourage everybody to run from you," Hooper said. "It's all about that balance. You weigh the dangers of the pursuit versus the safety of the community and the need for immediate apprehension."
The information given to the officers about the suspect will likely not be known to the general public, which is why it is hard to know exactly what decision officers may make in a given situation.
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