After two high speed chases along busy highways in under two weeks, WRAL looked into agencies’ policies surrounding pursuits involving law enforcement.
On Friday, a chase involving state troopers along Interstate 95 landed a street racing suspect in handcuffs. On Oct. 23, a suspected bank robber led Wake County deputies on a pursuit along I-87.
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According to the NC Sheriffs’ Association, the decision to pursue a fleeing suspect is less about whether an agency can, and more about whether they should.
“To have a pursuit, you have to have a citizen who is refusing to stop and then trying to flee at a high rate of speed before the officer will even get engaged,” said Eddie Caldwell, the Executive VP and General Counsel of the NC Sheriffs’ Association.
Caldwell said most agencies’ policies state they must consider a suspect’s danger to the public, the weather, and even the traffic before they decide to engage. Risks are weighed throughout the course of the pursuit.
“It's a continual balancing act, from the moment the violator commits a violation and refuses to stop,” Caldwell said.
The number of chases involving state troopers has remained relatively consistent since 2022 at over a thousand, which is still a huge increase from the 454 chases in 2019.
It’s not at the discretion of a single pursuing officer; a trooper must notify a supervisor upon their decision to initiate a chase.
According to personal injury attorney John McCabe, a pursuing officer could be sued if there’s proof of gross negligence, which is a very high standard in the eyes of the law.
Gross negligence entails a reckless indifference for the wellbeing and safety of other people.
“You look at what’s the purpose of the pursuit,” McCabe said. “Was there an active attempt to try to apprehend a criminal, or were you not doing that?”
North Carolina State Highway Patrol and the Wake County Sheriff’s Office both review every chase involving members of their agency to ensure policy was followed.