Title: Why Police Should not Chase a Car
Topic: Police and Runaway Criminals
Specific Purpose: To persuade my audience that high-speed police chasing cars should be prohibited so that the safety of others who are not involved is ensured.
Thesis: Roads involve numerous users including motorists and pedestrians who are at risk and danger when police are chasing runaway vehicles on highways.
Speech Design: Comparative advantages
Police officers never underestimate the threat of a runaway criminal to the public. They make instant decision to save the citizens from imminent danger. The actions taken by a police officer should consider the threat to the society and the need to uphold the law. The best decision should establish a balance between them.
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The majority of the people in the cities drive at an average speed to enhance their safety and those of their loved ones. Motorists also consider weather conditions and passengers in their vehicles. The drivers retain speed, which provides them with confidence and chance to give way to other cars moving at higher speed. Gattey (2018) found that some police officers engage in a futile pursuit, which risks all the road users. The high moving vehicles obstruct motorists leading to accidents. Ingraham (2015) found that police pursuit after runway vehicle causes more than the combination of tornadoes, hurricanes floods, and lightning in each year.
Roads involve numerous users including motorists and pedestrians who are at risk and danger when police are chasing runaway vehicles on highways.
Meanwhile, high moving speed threaten and kill pedestrians and reduces safety on the road through distraction. Police’s siren causes people to panic while encouraging the escaping vehicle to flaunt all traffic rules.
Police run involves risks to the officers and offenders, through reduced control of vehicles, and minimal time provided to motorists limit their decision-making.
The national and local government engage in the formulation of police power. However, their policies and structures expose police officers to prosecutions due to the dangerous driving. Yorke (2017) noted that law enforcers are not immune to the law when engaging in high-speed chases. The culpable offenders face prosecution over caress driving. Babwin (2015) reported that a woman whose 13-month son was killed during a high-speed chase sued the officer who had previously disregarded the order to abandon the pursuit. The case raises concern over the motivation to pursue a risky option when the police have several alternatives. Quelly (2015) noted that this incident shows a level of incompetence among police officers by engaging for an extended period chasing a harmless suspect.
The majority of the police pursuits are unnecessary. According to Ingraham (2015), high-speed police chases are prevalent in urban areas, particularly to areas with high population density. The officers miscalculate their actions when chasing petty delinquents, such as traffic offenders and harmless criminals. For example, police pursued Taylor Clark in Chicago leading to a clash after they suspected his jeep was similar to another one used in a criminal offense (Olumhense, 2018). The law enforcement agencies did not illustrate any level of professionalism by relentlessly chasing a vehicle without critical evidence to prove their case. Bradbury (2017) noted that the majority of accidents in police chase are incredibly dangerous to the victims, bystanders, and the officers. In a public space with high traffic of people, it is relatively risky to consider the suspect alone without evaluating the surrounding environment. Therefore, the incidents cause premature death, dangerous decision-making process, and loss of crucial suspect.
The state law emphasis that police departments need written policies that define suitable conditions for engaging in chases. Luthern (2017) reported that police in Milwaukee County failed to evaluate the severity of the crime, population density, and road conditions when chasing an unidentified woman. The pursuit ended when the women stopped on the roadside and locked herself in the car. She died from an overdose of opioids she had taken earlier. The incident contravened the policies that require the withdrawal of pursuit when the suspect only engages in non-violent felonies or drug possession. According to Frank (2015), law enforcement agencies should desist from pursuing offenders in traffic violations or misdemeanors.
Police officers conceal cases and evidence in their reports. Frank (2015) noted that the country had experienced 11, 309 incidents from 1979 to 2015where 6,300 suspects died. The number is relatively low considering some officer do not record in their reports that before death there was a chase. The figure does not encourage the local government to formulate policies to curve the dynamism of widespread threats to human life. The country receives more than 70 deaths of civilians from a high-speed police chase. Frank (2015) argues the actual number of bystander experiencing injuries from pursuits may be as high as 250, 000. The police only record and recognizes incidents with fatal crashes. Nevertheless, the presentation of misleading facts discourages the cops from evaluating each case independently from previous encounters.
The elimination of police pursuit is not a new concept in the United States. Some towns have reduced deaths and injuries emanating from police chases by canceling all of them. For instance, a police chief in 2003 revoked the pursuit of criminals in Chattanooga (Bradbury, 2017). The strategy was short-lived and was reversed when a new police chief took over the office. The reinstatement of police pursuit led to the death of two men after three months. After Cleveland shooting, police are cautious about chases and criminal pursuits (Alcindor, 2014). The existing data from the city does not illustrate the rise of criminality after the abolishment of police chases. The removal and reinstatement of pursuits demonstrate that the encompassed decisions are personal rather than institutional. The level of conviction a police officer obtains from an incident determine the action he or she will take towards a runaway criminal.
The high number of deaths and injuries should convince the police to abandon the high-speed chase. The practice exposes the government to the loss of critical resources such as labor. The police officers who die during pursuit necessitate recruitment and hiring. The government loses experience and incurs the cost of training new officers. Moreover, the death of young people and children deny them an opportunity to explore and contribute to the growth of the national economy. Injuries sustained from police pursuit reduce the optimum production of an individual either temporarily or permanently. The victims have to pay for medical treatment and therapies, leading to strains in families. Finally, the police have to abandon the high-speed pursuit of runaway vehicles due to low-level of skills in decision-making during the determination of their relevance. The national and state law requires officers to chase cars when suspicious things or behaviors are noted. With limited time and opportunity, an officer cannot determine when to pursue or retreat from a pursuit. The runaway vehicles do not provide a chance to check inside of the need for the chase.
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References
Alcindor, Y. (2014). After Cleveland shooting, cities restrict police chases. USA Today. Retrieved from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/06/28/after-cleveland-shooting-cities-restrict-police-chases/10724699/
Babwin, D. (2015). Chicago police sued for high-speed chase that killed baby. The Seattle Times. Retrieved from https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/chicago-police-sued-for-high-speed-chase-that-killed-baby/
Bradbury, S. (2017). To chase or not to chase? Police must weigh cost, danger of pursuits. Times Free Press. Retrieved from https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2017/mar/12/chase-or-not-chasepolice-mut-weigh-cost-dange/417194/
Frank, T. (2015). High-speed police chases have killed thousands of innocent bystanders. USA Today. Retrieved from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2015/07/30/police-pursuits-fatal-injuries/30187827/
Gattey, M. (2017). Police chases: Fleeing drivers must ‘take more responsibility’, police say. Stuff. Retrieved from https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/102175247/police-chases-fleeing-drivers-must-take-more-responsibility-police-say
Ingraham, C. (2015). Police chases kill more people each year than floods, tornadoes, hurricanes and lightning — combined. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/07/25/why-police-shouldnt-chase-criminals/
Luthern, A. (2017). When should police chase fleeing cars? Journal Sentinel. Retrieved from https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/crime/2017/06/07/when-should-police-chase-fleeing-cars/355857001/
Olumhense, E. (2018). Family of off-duty Chicago cop killed in high-speed crash while fleeing police sues city. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved from http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-met-cop-killed-police-chase-lawsuit-20180628-story.html
Quelly, J. (2017). Police pursuits cause unnecessary deaths and injuries, L.A. County grand jury says. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved from http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-police-pursuits-dangers-20170711-story.html
Yorke, H. (2017). Police chase laws to be reviewed amid fears officers are unable to tackle moped-riding criminals. The Telegraph. Retrieved from https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/09/25/police-chase-laws-reviewed-amid-fears-officers-unable-tackle/