MICHIGAN, USA — Col. James F. Grady II, director of the Michigan State Police (MSP), has announced that the MSP is changing its policy on how it handles vehicle pursuits of suspects.
"The MSP is aligning its pursuit policy with best practices that will protect the lives of innocent bystanders and our enforcement members," read the announcement.
The new policy makes it so that MSP enforcement members are only supposed to pursue a suspect if they have probable cause to believe the driver or occupant of the pursued vehicle has committed a life-threatening or violent felony.
“High-speed pursuits are one of the most dangerous circumstances police officers face,” stated Grady. “A key consideration in any pursuit must be the seriousness of the underlying crime and whether the risks of a pursuit outweigh the public safety benefits of immediately apprehending the suspect. In all decisions, protecting lives – that of innocent bystanders, police officers and fleeing suspects – is of paramount importance and it is for this reason we have revised our policy.”
MSP reported they had 235 pursuits in the year 2022. In 2023, they came in at 236 pursuits. So far for 2024, they've had 33 pursuits.
They also said national statistics show that crashes occur in at least 30% of vehicle pursuits. They added that injuries or fatalities occur in 5-17% of pursuits.
According to the announcement, this revised policy aligns with recommendations from the Police Executive Research Forum in its 2023 report, “Vehicular Pursuits: A Guide for Law Enforcement Executives on Managing the Associated Risks.”
To read more about the policy you can visit michigan.gov/msp.
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