A Johnson County Sheriff's Office vehicle along State Road 37 in May 2019.
Daily Journal File Photo
New statewide minimum standards for police pursuits went into effect on New Year’s Day, but several local agencies say they already have policies that exceed the new requirements.
The Indiana Law Enforcement Training Board’s new Uniform Statewide Policy on Minimum Standards for Vehicle Pursuits went into effect on Jan. 1, creating new minimum standards for how police can pursue suspects during pursuits. The policy is the result of legislation passed in 2022 which required the board to create new minimum standards for vehicle pursuits, along with consistent and uniform policies for the use of deadly force and defensive tactics.
The new pursuit policy was passed by the training board on Nov. 7. All police agencies in Indiana were required to incorporate the policy into their own procedures and guidelines before 2023 began.
Public safety should be a top concern, and police officers should consider several factors when it comes to police pursuits, according to the new standards. These factors include the suspect’s alleged violation, what they are wanted for or suspected of, imminent danger to the public and the potential danger if the suspect isn’t apprehended immediately.
Additionally, officers should consider the time of day, traffic conditions and visibility and their familiarity with surroundings and population density, the standards say. Officers should also not shoot at or from a vehicle during a pursuit, or use police vehicles as a weapon, except in situations where deadly force is allowed by law.
The new policy is especially beneficial for smaller municipalities, as many did not have a set pursuit policy, said Mark Myers, mayor of Greenwood and a member of the training board. Myers fills a seat on the board designated for an elected official of Indiana counties, cities and or towns. He was also a member of a subcommittee established specifically to develop the new pursuit and use of deadly force policies.
By giving every agency a standard policy to be adopted, the new policy helps correct the issue of departments not having set policies. It also gives agencies the option to adopt more strict standards, as it only sets minimum standards, Myers said.
“It will help other agencies assist each other and know what to expect out of each other’s pursuits,” he said. “It makes it safer for law enforcement and the general public.”
Police pursuits can be dangerous for everyone involved. Last February in Mooresville, police were involved in a high-speed chase with a suspect that ended in an accident that killed a woman who was an innocent bystander, according to wire reports.
Locally, a Nineveh man was killed and a Trafalgar police officer was severely injured in a June crash after a police pursuit. The pursuit ended after both the officer and the Nineveh man crashed into an embankment off the intersection of County Roads 300 South and 600 West in Trafalgar.
The Daily Journal reached out to some of the county’s largest police agencies to find out if they’ve updated their policies. The Bargersville Police Department updated their own pursuit policy to match the new standards as soon as the training board released them, said Jeremy Roll, Bargersville Police spokesperson.
The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office pursuit policy was already “pretty tight” before the training board passed new standards, Sheriff Duane Burgess said.
“In my first term, we went through and tightened those policies up. We matched theirs up with ours,” Burgess said.
One notable difference between the county’s and the state’s standards is the precision immobilization technique, more commonly known as the PIT maneuver. PITs are a pursuit tactic where a pursuing car can force a fleeing car to turn sideways abruptly, causing the driver to lose control and stop.
The state standards allow PIT maneuvers in certain situations, whereas the sheriff’s office doesn’t allow them period, he said.
The Franklin Police Department’s policy already exceeds state guidelines, and will likely not need any changes, said Kirby Cochran, police chief.
“We’ve always been more stringent. That’s always been the case,” Cochran said.
Greenwood Police also do not anticipate making any changes to their policy. The department’s current policy was last updated in March, and was written by Lexipol, a national firm that provides public safety policy and training solutions, said Matt Fillenwarth, assistant chief of police.
“The attorneys at Lexipol will advise us if any changes are needed,” Fillenwarth said.
Many parts of Greenwood’s policy already mimic the state’s new standards, and some sections go into more detail. Among the similarities are the factors to be considered for initiating a pursuit and the use of firearms, according to a copy of the policy obtained by the Daily Journal.
Myers agrees with all of the changes made by the new standards. They will give police departments a stronger set of rules to go by, he said.
Burgess appreciates the state’s moves to tighten the pursuit policies and have every department on the same page. Some departments’ individual policies have caused a lot of controversy across the state, and this could help address that, he said.
“I understand what they’re doing,” Burgess said. “I think it’s good to work together.”
