After a high-speed chase that ended in the death of an innocent woman, Lawrence officials say they are reviewing the Police Department’s policy governing vehicle pursuits and examining what police do elsewhere.

What they’ll find, if they look closely at some other Kansas law enforcement agencies, is that many of them have better defined or more restrictive rules than those guiding police here.

In nearby Overland Park, police don’t chase people for traffic violations or erratic driving, the kind of circumstances that prompted Lawrence officers to chase a man who crashed into and killed 56-year-old Judith Vellucci on Aug. 26 at the intersection of 31st Street and Nieder Road.

“We have decided … as the policy-makers, that, no, it’s not worth it” to pursue, said Lt. Col Stephen Smith, tactical operations commander for the Overland Park Police Department. “We create a more dangerous situation by trying to pursue somebody who’s speeding than it would to just let that person roll on down the road. … Whatever happens down the road, it’s not going to be a result of police action.”

The Hutchinson Police Department’s vehicle-pursuit policy states in bold type: “Officers shall not pursue traffic violators.”

Both the Overland Park and Kansas City, Mo., departments have policies to not pursue stolen vehicles unless there are aggravating factors.

Community decision

Such restrictions are controversial among enforcers because they compel police to do something that seems contrary to all law-enforcement stands for. Drive wildy enough, the policies seem to say, and police will let you go.

“It boils down to ‘What does the community want?'” said Lt. John Sidwell, who writes policies for the Topeka Police Department. “If the community indicates that they would prefer to take the risks of increased (traffic) fatalities over the risks of pursuit deaths, then that’s what the law-enforcement community needs to do.”

Topeka Police Lt. John Stidwell writes policies for his department. Lawrence city officials are reviewing pursuit policies of area police departments after Lawrence Police were involved in an Aug. 26 chase that ended in the death of an innocent woman.

Topeka, like Lawrence, does not prohibit officers from chasing traffic violators.

“There’s a good reason for that: People that are committing crimes do traffic violations,” Sidwell said. “How do you know that it’s just a speeding violation that they’re running from, or did they just kidnap somebody? Can you imagine the legal liability if that did occur and we decided not to pursue? It’s sort of a Catch-22.”

‘No standards’

Restrictions aside, Lawrence’s pursuit policy lacks many details commonly found in other police departments’ handbooks. Jim Phillips, who reviews pursuit policies nationwide and runs the Web site www.pursuitwatch.org, called Lawrence’s policy superficial.

“There’s no standards,” said Phillips, of Orlando, Fla., whose 20-year-old daughter died in a pursuit-related crash in 2001. “If you have this brief, superficial policy and they’re not busting their butt training, it’s a runaway train.”

¢ Officer-turned-attorney asks for police pursuit changes (9-3-03)¢ Police cleared in chase probe (8-30-03)¢ 6News video: Police cleared in chase investigation (8-30-03)¢ Witness says driver was ‘going to kill somebody’ (8-30-03)¢ Wildgen: Review shows police not at fault in fatal collision (8-29-03)¢ City to review fatal police chase (8-29-03)¢ 6News video: Cho charged with second-degree murder (8-29-03)¢ Police: Pursuit warranted (8-28-03)¢ 6News video: Police say pursuit followed policies (8-28-03)¢ Death is second of summer for victim’s family (8-28-03)¢ LPD pursuit policy¢Join the discussion on Reader Reaction¢Victims of Police Pursuits¢Kristie’s Law

For example:

l Lawrence’s policy does not list specific factors — such as time of day, terrain, density of traffic, or familiarity with an area — officers must weigh before they decide whether to pursue. Other departments that list these kinds of factors include Topeka, Wichita, Hutchinson, Overland Park and Kansas City, Mo.

“They are common sense, but we want to make sure that the officers understand that those are the things they need to consider, and it should be readily available to them to review,” Sidwell, of Topeka, said. “We want to remind the officers of their responsibilities when they’re initiating the chase.”

l It does not state that officers will not be disciplined for terminating a pursuit. Both Kansas City, Mo., and Topeka have policies to this effect.

l It does not list specific scenarios under which officers must call off a pursuit. It does say officers must stop giving chase if “safety conditions clearly override the necessity of the pursuit,” but while other departments’ policies contain similar language, they don’t stop there.

In Wichita, for example, officers must end the pursuit if police lose sight of the suspect for more than a moment or if “unfavorable weather, road, traffic or vehicle conditions” warrant. The Wichita policy also requires officers to stop pursuing if they learn enough about the suspect’s identity to make an arrest later, unless they have probable cause that the person is an immediate threat to the public.

Kansas City, Mo.’s policy requires officers to stop pursuing if they “lose contact” with the suspect’s vehicle.

The length of the pursuit is another factor Overland Park requires officers to consider but that doesn’t appear in Lawrence’s policy.

“As a general rule, the longer the pursuit has lasted, the less likelihood of apprehension and the greater the likelihood of danger of injury or property damage to others not involved,” Smith said.

City reviewing policy

The Lawrence officers who were pursuing 19-year-old Nam Ouk Cho had lost sight of his vehicle and slowed shortly before Cho struck Vellucci’s car, police have said.

During the roughly four-mile pursuit that preceded the crash, Cho sped west on Ninth Street and south on Kasold Drive at speeds up to 80 miles per hour, tore through traffic signals, and swerved around a set of police spikes at 22nd Street and Kasold, according to reports.

City Manager Mike Wildgen said people in his office were busy reading other departments’ policies, as well as national studies. He said it was too early to say whether the Lawrence policy needs an update in specific areas.

“I haven’t made that judgment yet, and neither has the chief,” Wildgen said. “We’re taking a good, hard look at the policy.”

Police Chief Ron Olin said through a spokesman he didn’t want to comment until the city had finished its review.