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* Last week, Republican gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey said Chicago’s strict vehicle pursuit guidelines “make it impossible for police to do their jobs and let criminals go free.”
* Last night in the Tribune…
The family of a mother killed in a high-speed Chicago police chase would receive $15 million under a pending settlement approved by a City Council committee Monday, more than two years after her high-profile death sparked revisions to the city’s vehicle pursuit policy.
Guadalupe Francisco-Martinez, a 37-year-old mother of six, died in the June 2020 crash at Irving Park Road and Ashland Avenue when a Chicago police car that was chasing a suspect barreled into her, according to the city’s Law Department counsel Mimi Ruether. Francisco-Martinez’s estate filed a wrongful-death lawsuit alleging wrongdoing on the officer’s part for speeding, blowing a red light and violating Police Department policy on chases. […]
The police car was traveling 101 mph right before the crash and 89 mph at the time of impact, Ruether said. Francisco-Martinez was driving 20 to 27 mph.
Francisco-Martinez was extricated from her car and died in the hospital during surgery. Oliver was arrested about 20 minutes later and charged with first-degree murder, vehicular hijacking, possession of a stolen motor vehicle, and other charges in connection with the chase and crash.
* NBC reported in June that Chicago far outnumbers other cities in fatal police car chases…
According to Chicago Police Department data NBC News obtained through public records requests and first reported, the city has seen a significant amount of wreckage from police pursuits and emergency response crashes.
From August 2017 to the end of last year, the department recorded two dozen fatal chases and 617 crashes during pursuits, the data show.
Fatal pursuits in Chicago far outnumbered those reported during the same period in the country’s two largest cities — six in Los Angeles and two in New York City — according to Fatal Encounters, the independently run database that tracks every deadly interaction with police in the country.
During the same period, data show, Chicago police recorded 729 emergency response calls that resulted in crashes. Twenty-one civilians and 225 officers were injured.
* In the wake of Franco-Martinez’s death, the CPD updated its pursuit policy.Streets Blog Chicago…
The force had previously changed its pursuit protocols after another case where a chase led to the senseless death of a bystander. In January 2003, then-sergeant Paul Bauer was pursuing a man who had stolen a wallet in River North when the man stopped at a red and placed the wallet on the road. Bauer disregarded an order to end the chase, and the fleeing suspect eventually collided with another driver in the West Loop, then struck Qing Chang, 25, as she stood on the sidewalk, killing her and her unborn child. Chang’s husband was awarded a $17.5 million settlement from the city. (Bauer was eventually promoted to commander, and was fatally shot outside the Thompson Center while confronting an armed man in February 2018.)
In the wake of Chang’s death, the 2003 policy revision prohibited pursuit for minor offenses like theft, including theft of a vehicle. According to the policy, CPD officers are charged with applying an in-the-moment “balancing test” to determine if “the necessity to immediately apprehend the fleeing suspect outweighs the level of inherent danger created by a motor vehicle pursuit.”
The 2020 policy revision added a few more restrictions and procedures regarding pursuits, plus new incident reporting requirements. It also states that “The department will not discipline any member for terminating a motor vehicle pursuit.”
But these policies can hardly be considered progressive. The latest revisions in the CPD pursuit policy now align with a set of recommendations issued by The U.S. Department of Justice and National Institute of Justice in 1990, more than 30 years ago. The conclusion of the “NIJ Restrictive Policies for High-Speed Police Pursuits” states that “High-speed vehicle pursuits are possibly the most dangerous of all ordinary police activities,” and recommends finding alternatives to pursuit whenever possible. [Emphasis added.]
* Chicago police officials hope to replace two helicopters and Sheriff Tom Dart hopes to get a helicopter, too, the Sun-Times reports…
A police source said the city has earmarked about $12 million to buy two new helicopters, but no contracts have been signed. […]
Ald. Matt O’Shea (19th) has called on Lightfoot and Brown to get more police helicopters to combat carjackings in his Southwest Side neighborhood and the rest of the city. O’Shea said he’s spoken to representatives of Illinois Democratic Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth and to U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill., about the possibility of securing federal money for one or more of them.
“Why we haven’t invested in purchasing multiple helicopters is puzzling,” O’Shea said. “It’s a proven tool to combat the crimes that are decimating our city.”
O’Shea said he’s been told the department’s helicopters are in “poor condition” and frequently out of service for maintenance.
* Last year, the Chicago Sun-Times revealed that CPD had launched a secret drone program with off-the-books cash…
Details of the police department’s drone program were included in an email sent last summer by Karen Conway, director of police research and development. In the email, Conway told other high-ranking police officials that the department’s counter-terrorism bureau “utilized 1505 funds for a pilot Drone program that operates within the parameters of current laws.” […]
Conway’s comments about the police department’s drone program were included in an email discussing a new vehicle pursuit policy.
The memo also included other technology options the department was considering to apparently minimize the risk of engaging in chases: a device to shut down a fleeing vehicle’s engine and a system for remote tracking. The latter option, StarChase, is a mechanism that allows cops to shoot a GPS-equipped dart at a suspect’s car.
Last August, the police department issued revised directives on pursuits, but the general order bears no mention of the technologies.
I’m curious why drones haven’t been at the forefront of this new policy. They’re certainly cheaper than helicopters.
posted by Isabel Miller
Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 1:28 pm
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The anti policing left will argue that drones have a disproportionate impact on minority communities.
They make the same argument for Shot Spotter and traffic cameras.
Drones are cheaper and much safer than helicopters.
Easy to train cops or civilians how to operate one. At least younger cops who are video game friendly.
Comment by IrishPirate Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 1:40 pm
===They make the same argument for Shot Spotter===
I think the main argument against Shot Spotter is that it doesn’t work, something like a 90% false positive rate if left to the algorithm.
As for disproportionate impact on minorities, yea that’s a concern of the police reform movement. Are you saying it’s not real, that it doesn’t matter, or… what? It’s kind of a non sequitur in a comment that’s otherwise about drones vs helicopters.
Comment by vern Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 1:46 pm
“The latest revisions in the CPD pursuit policy now align with a set of recommendations issued by The U.S. Department of Justice and National Institute of Justice in 1990, more than 30 years ago.”
“Chicago ain’t ready for reform.” — Mathias “Paddy” Bauler, 43rd Ward Alderman (1939)
– MrJM
Comment by MisterJayEm Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 1:53 pm
Rich, you are right about drones. the use would be very helpful. but I recall something the City of Chicago did in Council about negating the use of drones and police matters. and Irish Pirate is correct that the argument against will come from the left. camera drones would be useful for the street donut nonsense also.
Comment by Amalia Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 1:54 pm
@IrishPirate - I can already see the Chicago Reader and Block Club Chicago articles now.
Comment by Chicagonk Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 1:54 pm
I can’t find the book’s name, but I read a book about drone technology that has moved from the battlefield to other locations. The idea of the all-knowing eye, with good enough resolution, you can monitor a large area and store enough data to ‘play it back’. So you could take a drive-by shooting and, using the data from the drone, rewind it and see where the car that did the shooting came from.
This isn’t incident response as much as constant monitoring. If I recall correctly, a city did some work with it. The civil liberty implications are significant. But it seemed an interesting idea from a technology viewpoint.
Comment by OneMan Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 1:55 pm
===Rich, you are right===
Isabel wrote the post.
Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 1:55 pm
I don’t claim to be an expert on drones, but I would think their utility is limited, except for say looking for offenders in small areas. The types we are talking about here don’t appear to be the ones the military uses that can be flown from anywhere. These appear to require an operator in the line of sight, and thus are not useful for say long distance expressway chases - that will have to be helicopters.
As for the pursuit policy changes, it’s easy for outsider politicians like Bailey to criticize when they have no idea why the changes were made in the first place, and don’t care because their taxpayers weren’t footing the bill for all the innocent bystanders being hurt or killed and all the property damage.
Comment by Ron Burgundy Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 1:58 pm
The Book is Eyes In The Sky (Arthur Holland Michel) A good read IMHO
Eyes in the Sky is the authoritative account of how the Pentagon secretly developed a godlike surveillance system for monitoring America’s enemies overseas, and how it is now being used to watch us in our own backyards. Whereas a regular aerial camera can only capture a small patch of ground at any given time, this system—and its most powerful iteration, Gorgon Stare—allow operators to track thousands of moving targets at once, both forwards and backwards in time, across whole city-sized areas. When fused with big-data analysis techniques, this network can be used to watch everything simultaneously, and perhaps even predict attacks before they happen.
Comment by OneMan Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 1:59 pm
The reason for the large number of Chicago fatalities resulting from police pursuits is… 1) Lack of training. 2) Lack of effective supervision.
Like most other problems CPD faces.
Comment by Occasionally Moderated Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:01 pm
Drones can’t be flown above people or near airports so there aren’t too many places they can legally be used .
Comment by Da big bad wolf Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:04 pm
Yeah, drones are the first thing I thought of and, if the tech exists, put one in every squad that could be thrown into the air for the initial pursuit until an available copter could be directed, and have loitering drones circling. Get’er done.
Comment by PublicServant Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:04 pm
725 ILCS 167 Freedom from Drone Surveillance Act specifically prohibits the use of drones by police with some exceptions.
I do not believe a police pursuit would meet any of the exceptions.
Comment by Occasionally Moderated Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:10 pm
https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/interactive/2022/police-misconduct-insurance-settlements-reform/
Insurance companies have weighed in and forced changes to police department policies nationwide
Comment by very old soil Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:13 pm
==The police car was traveling 101 mph right before the crash and 89 mph at the time of impact==
I can’t imagine that sort of driving met any police pursuit policy. It would seem that common sense would tell you that driving like that was unwarranted.
Comment by Demoralized Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:17 pm
-put one in every squad that could be thrown into the air-
It’s not that simple. There are FAA training and licensing requirements.
Comment by Ron Burgundy Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:18 pm
=Yeah, drones are the first thing I thought of and, if the tech exists, put one in every squad that could be thrown into the air for the initial pursuit until an available copter could be directed, and have loitering drones circling. =
I think there’s a multitude of reasons, some legal, regulatory and practical, as to why no other department in the country is currently doing this. That’s not to say that drones aren’t being used more regularly in law enforcement, but the use is limited and specific. Echoing the comment above, training and supervision have long been challenges for the CPD. As a department they are actually well funded. They just have a really poor ROI particularly when using the barometers of cases cleared and victim settlements.
Comment by Pundent Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:26 pm
===would meet any of the exceptions.===
They can always just pass a new bill.
Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:34 pm
@Occassionally Moderated - @Occasionally Moderated - Sec. 15 (3) states: If a law enforcement agency possesses reasonable suspicion that, under particular circumstances, swift action is needed to prevent imminent harm to life, or to forestall the imminent escape of a suspect or the destruction of evidence. The use of a drone under this paragraph (3) is limited to a period of 48 hours. Within 24 hours of the initiation of the use of a drone under this paragraph (3), the chief executive officer of the law enforcement agency must report in writing the use of a drone to the local State’s Attorney.
So sounds like they can use it in a police pursuit (imminent escape of a suspect). Of course, “under particular circumstances” isn’t defined in the Act as far as I could tell, so there may be additional restrictions.
Comment by /s Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:36 pm
-I think there’s a multitude of reasons, some legal, regulatory and practical, as to why no other department in the country is currently doing this.-
The issue is creating a different kind of liability by using drones instead of pursuits. They have to be flown properly, in designated areas and at designated altitudes, not flown over people (they have propeller blades on them and can be heavy), have operators trained to set them down safely in the event of damage or malfunction, and their uses are limited so they aren’t used to just look in anyone’s window. Put one of those up at a couple thousand feet in the flight paths at ORD or MDW and you are asking for trouble.
Comment by Ron Burgundy Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:41 pm
The article I cite above reports that one community is equipping police cars with darts that can be shot into the rear of the car they are chasing, The darts have GPS
Comment by very old soil Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:41 pm
“Anti policing left”. The only people who talk about Defunding the Police are Republicans. What Americans are asking is why do you need a Sherman Tank and B52s for a suicide ideation call? As to drones, its not a bad idea. Its just like a video game. Maybe the police can learn the ways of the “Force” to guide them like when Luke blew up the Death Star at the end of Star Wars.
Comment by Jerry Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 2:47 pm
@ /s, @Rich,
New bill would be my preference.
That bill was passed in 2014, I’m not sure we knew what we were worried about oor what the capabilities of drones were back then.
ISP has been very successful with tracking fleeing cars with fixed wing aircraft, Drones might be a good strategy too.
Comment by Occasionally Moderated Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 3:36 pm
Drones:
This investigative report from CBS2 about the use of drones to corral highwaymen doing parking shakedowns on Dan Ryan ramps around Guaranteed Rate Field shows they can be effective. But also there appear to be private property limitations for use of drones which may affect how and when and where they can be used in law enforcement operations.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/motorsports/scam-artists-on-scooters-swindle-dan-ryan-drivers-heading-to-white-sox-games/vi-AA11UqUU?cvid=cce56177cd904efcb7f630b54d440c48&category=foryou
Comment by Responsa Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 4:32 pm
The ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine has proven how capable commercial drones can be. Social media is filled with videos of drones in action, particularly with spotting and tracking targets, which is exactly what law enforcement in the US could be doing. But if drones can be rigged to drop grenades, I guess they could also be rigged to drop those sticky GPS trackers.
Comment by MyTwoCents Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 5:13 pm
Between law enforcement agencies of City of Chicago, the State Police, and Cook County Sheriff, they should coordinate to have at least one or two helicopters in the air above Chicago 24/7 weather permitting.
Comment by DuPage Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 5:15 pm
sorry Isabel.
Comment by Amalia Tuesday, Sep 20, 22 @ 5:37 pm
Perhaps unpopular opinion, but I am all for police persuit policies. Some years back my spouse and I were struck by a police car in high pursuit chase, during inclement weather. We were slowed to a near stop readying to turn left into our driveway from a rural state highway. A police car plowed into us in excess of 100 MPH, in the rain,sleet mix that was falling. Broke the frame of our truck in two in two different places. The wreckage littered our front yard and driveway. Thank heavens for seat belts. It was a traumatic experience that thankfully resulted in no serious injuries, but a fair amount of property damage. I still get buggy when I see lights or hear sirens behind me.
Comment by DownSouth Wednesday, Sep 21, 22 @ 8:58 am