Vehicular Pursuits: A Guide for Law Enforcement Executives on Managing the Associated Risks 2023

This Department of Justice publication, Vehicular Pursuits: A Guide for Law Enforcement Executives on Managing the Associated Risks 2023, discusses Police Vehicle Pursuits. Police vehicular pursuits present physical, emotional, and economic risks to the officer, bystanders, any passengers, and the fleeing suspect. Given these risks, law enforcement agencies need a resource that identifies solutions for managing high-risk vehicular pursuits. In 2020, Congress directed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in partnership with police jurisdictions, to conduct a study that would lead to the development of accurate reporting and analyses of crashes that involve police pursuits. While NHTSA currently collects data on first responder vehicles that are involved in fatalities during police pursuits, those data are subject to significant underreporting. NHTSA and the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) tasked the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) with developing a guide, using the findings from that research, to provide pursuit safety information, research data, and model policies to foster the promotion of safer vehicular pursuits. PERF, NHTSA, and the COPS Office developed this resource in consultation with the Pursuits Working Group to help police agencies manage the risks of vehicular pursuits. This document explains the context for decision-making on pursuit policy, including the choices and risks associated with pursuits, and gives guidance to executives on making the best choices for their agency and community. This guide is applicable to law enforcement agencies of all types. The fundamental consideration that any agency—state or local, urban or rural, etc.—must consider when establishing its vehicle pursuits policy is the same: balancing risk and reward. Read more