A Haltom City police chase that ended in a crash in Dallas Sunday marks at least the second chase to weave between North Texas cities this month — something law enforcement officials say adds another important factor to consider in crafting police pursuit policies.
Police officials said Sunday's chase started after an officer saw a black Mustang "driving erratically" in the 4000 block of Denton Highway around 1:30 a.m. Sunday. Dashboard camera footage released Monday shows the driver didn't yield when the officer turned on the police car's lights.
Two Irving police units joined the chase once it entered that city's limits. That's in line with what Haltom City police spokesperson Matt Spillane said is an inter-jurisdictional pact between North Texas law enforcement agencies that allows other cities' police to provide backup in pursuits, given the chase follows the assisting department's policy.
"Like when we went through Irving, Irving will ask, you know, 'what was the reason for the initial pursuit?' Just like our supervisors would ask," Spillane said in an interview with KERA News. "They'll also ask how many officers are currently in a pursuit. So, our pursuit policy says in general, we'll have no more than three, one of which will be a supervisor."
Police pursuit policies vary between jurisdictions. KERA News and the Fort Worth Report spoke with departments across the region, and found that some departments pursue a vehicle only under strict circumstances — like suspected violent felonies — while others are less stringent.
According to a document provided to KERA News, Haltom City's policy allows an officer to initiate a chase if the pursued vehicle doesn't stop when an officer directs them to and the officer believes it is "immediately necessary to apprehend the offender or recover property."
Haltom City officers may continue chasing "if the officer reasonably determines from the circumstances that it will not expose any person to a risk of collision, injury or death greater than a reasonable need to apprehend the offender or recover property," according to the policy.
The Irving Police Department's pursuit policy doesn't specifically outline when chases are authorized, but the document lists conditions officers should weigh in deciding whether to pursue a suspect, like the seriousness of the offense and the risk to the public and the officer or officers involved.
During Sunday's chase, police say the Mustang drove through a red light and hit a GMC Acadia in the intersection of Continental Avenue and North Stemmons Freeway. Both women in the SUV, ages 33 and 44, were transported to Parkland Hospital with "what appeared to be non-life-threatening injuries."
The driver and two passengers of the Mustang were both 15 years old, and the other passenger was 13. Spillane said the department will not release the names or genders of the minors involved in the crash. Charges including evading arrest are pending.
The Dallas County Sheriff's Office also helped investigate the crash, Spillane said.
Earlier this month, a chase led by Irving police into Dallas ended in a fiery crash and the deaths of four people in the vehicle being pursued. There have been at least four North Texas police chases this month.
Dallas, Fort Worth and Denton and other departments outline the procedure for pursuits that cross city limits in their pursuit policies, usually requiring supervisor approval based on the facts of the pursuit.
In an interview with the Fort Worth Report, Chief Mike Holguin with the Kennedale Police Department said his officers don't jump into a pursuit if the reason for the chase doesn't meet the department's criteria. In his experience, Holguin said other local departments typically respect that.
"You can't base the results of your actions on the policies of another agency," Holguin said. "You're accountable to your own policies."
The chase is currently under a formal department review process. From video he's watched, Spillane said nothing in the chase jumped out as a violation of policy.
"It's always a balance we weigh between the need to continue the chase and the need to protect our citizens as well as the officers themselves," Spillane said. "So, that's continually being reviewed in real time as the officers go continue the chase."
Fort Worth Report local government accountability reporter Emily Wolf contributed to this report.
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