NYPD cops ordered not to chase some drivers who flee after spate of high-speed crashes
NYPD cops won’t chase drivers who speed away into traffic unless they’re wanted for the most serious and violent crimes — under a new policy announced Wednesday.
The revamped policy, which takes effect Feb. 1, bars cops from pursuing suspects for traffic infractions, violations or non-violent misdemeanors, police Commissioner Jessica Tisch.
The announcement comes after a spate of dangerous — and often deadly — high-speed crashes.
“The NYPD’s enforcement efforts must never put the public or the police at undue risk, and pursuits for violations and low-level crimes can be both potentially dangerous and unnecessary,” Tisch said in a statement.
“The advanced tools of modern-day policing make it possible to apprehend criminals more safely and effectively than ever before, making many pursuits unnecessary.”
The rule change — first reported by Streetsblog — came after a staggering rise in NYPD car chases, many of which led to devastating crashes that left innocent New Yorkers injured or dead.
Police pursuits jumped nearly 600% during the first three months of 2023, and led to a record-breaking more than one crash per day last year, The City reported.
The chases left a tragic trail of carnage, such as an October hit-and-run crash by a burglary suspect trying to shake NYPD cops on his tail in Queens. The speeding suspect struck and killed avid bicyclist Amanda Servedio, 36, as she pedaled down a quiet Astoria block.
Another cyclist in December was injured by a fleeing suspected drug dealer, who stole a car and led police on a wild chase through the narrow streets of Greenwich Village. The suspect drove the wrong way, with cops close behind, before barreling into the 44-year-old cyclist.
And a sicko accused of abducting a 9-year-old girl from a Queens supermarket in August died after he crashed while fleeing cops. Dramatic footage showed the alleged perv — Wayne Noel, 64 —speed down a Queens Village street before he T-boned another car.
NYPD data show roughly 25% of nearly 2,300 vehicle pursuits last year resulted in a crash, property damage or physical harm.
Of those, 67% stemmed from a suspect fleeing a car stop by cops, data show.
Many of those chases will be banned under the new policy, officials said.
The policy requires cops to weigh whether a potential pursuit is in a residential community or near a school or playground.
Officers also won’t face criticism or discipline if they stop the pursuit because they don’t believe it can be done safely.
Patrick Hendry, the president of the Police Benevolent Association, said the union is thankful for NYPD brass listening to their concerns about police chases.
“However, it will be up to the Department to ensure that this policy is applied so that neither police officers nor the public are unnecessarily put at risk,” he said in a statement.
Additional reporting by Larry Celona
