It is a very difficult decision for a policeman to make when he decides to chase a car at great speed.

The policy of the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service (RCIPS) is to immediately notify a senior police supervisor that a vehicular chase by a police officer is in progress. The officer must give a reason for the pursuit.

This has been highlighted recently in the case of a police chase in 2008 when a man died as a result of the car he was a passenger in was being chased by a police officer.

Grand Court Justice Alex Henderson ruled that the police officer contributed to the accident where both cars were travelling in speeds in excess of 80mph on West Bay roads.

The judgment ruled that the officer, a constable, “had no evidence which would justify an arrest for either a drug offence or a firearms offence”.

The officer did not abide by the RCIPS car pursuit policy.

The car being pursued hit a light pole and one of the passengers was killed and the family of the deceased sued the police officer and the Cayman Islands government.

In the United States statistics prove that high-speed police chases kill hundreds of people—including law enforcement officials, alleged criminals and innocent civilians—each year.

Michael Pines, a senior personal injury attorney states:

“The wrongful deaths and personal injuries caused by a police chase makes them one of top causes of car accidents.  While authorities are engaged in high-speed police chases to capture a fleeing suspect, there can be a disregard for the safety of other drivers as officers continue the chase well after the danger outweighs the need to apprehend the suspect.

“That is why two-thirds of those injured or killed in fatal car accidents stemming from a police chase are innocent drivers and pedestrians that have nothing to do with the chase.

“Pursuits by law enforcement on the road are even more dangerous than commonly thought.  More people in the United States are killed by high speed pursuits than they are by police firearms, and yet, these wrongful deaths from car accidents will likely continue year after year.”

Sobering words.

I live just off the West Bay Road and every week I am awakened between 1am and 3am by the noise of a siren from a police car racing down the road.

He might not be in pursuit but he is letting everyone know he is in a hurry and to get out of his way along a completely deserted road. If he is trying to get to a robbery in progress he is also notifying the robbers to leave immediately.

Of course there are times when speed can save a life but common sense must prevail. To save one life at the expense of others makes no sense at all.