Posted on 06/30/2017 3:44:24 PM PDT by BBell
As investigators probe the death of a 2-year-old girl whose father led Louisiana State Police troopers on a 7-mile chase through New Orleans that ended in a fatal crash and suicide, the girl's relatives are questioning whether the deadly pursuit was necessary at all.
"It was a license plate, and now our baby is dead because they pursued this guy," Alice Joseph, the deceased toddler's great grandmother told WVUE-Fox 8.
Troopers initiated the chase because the car was affixed with a stolen license plate, agency spokeswoman Trooper First Class Melissa Matey said Wednesday. She said the car had tinted windows, and troopers did not know the girl and another passenger were in the car. An expert in vehicle pursuits said the possibility that a child would be in a fleeing car would not typically be a factor officers consider when deciding if pursuing a suspect is worth the risk.
"Fortunately, most people are a whole lot more concerned about the safety of their children to not get into a police chase with (their child) in the car," said Daniel Kennedy, an adjunct criminal justice professor at Oakland University.
Two-year-old Ivory Washington and an unidentified male passenger were killed in the crash before the car's driver, identified by authorities as Ivory's father -- Kenneth Davis, 21 -- fatally shot himself. The grim outcome has reignited discussion about the appropriateness of police chases, and the circumstances that surround them, in an urban area like New Orleans.
"The police community has been debating this issue for a long time, there is no simple answer other than just don't chase anybody," Kennedy said. "But that isn't going to work either."
Kennedy, whose 2006 article, 'A comparative analysis of police vehicle pursuit policies," appeared in Justice Quarterly, said almost every law enforcement agency has a
(Excerpt) Read more at nola.com ...
This is a long in depth article that deals with training and policy of various law enforcement agencies.
BTW, this is the second chase this month that involved young children. What is up with these people?
Agree this is totally on the perp.
If it is a known violent offender, a police pursuit may be necessary, but risking the lives of innocent people is not in any way worth recovering stolen property.
So why bother paying police to stand around?
They reproduce young.
Kenneth Davis, 21 , another idiot that doesn’t understand the rules!
If you are going to kill someone and then commit suicide.
You are doing it, in the wrong order!
In Milwaukee with a no pursuit policy car jackings have gone way up. The jackers keep wrecking cars and killing themselves.
Toddler death reignites debate on police chases.
So then, there is no blame or accountability placed on the fleeing suspect who chooses to endanger himself and others by driving off and resisting police, at a high rate of speed.
Instead, they want to place blame on police for attempting to enforce the law.
Sounds like liberal logic to me. The driver thought nothing of endangering his little girl and the passenger to evade the police e. But that doesn’t matter. Instead we blame the police for chasing a fleeing driver.
Sad to say living in that household that baby girl had two strikes against her already.
“They reproduce young.”
Most of my friends are great grand parents-——makes me feel left out. :-)
.
Obviously this moron cared more about himself, than the child he had in the car. Her death is on him, not the police.
A non pursuit policy is a guarantee of escape from crime scenes as well as an increase in crime.
So lets add "non pursuit" to the list which includes " profiling" of what cops can't do. That should help cut crime.........
Maybe putting governors on the engines of cop cars limiting their speeds to 50 mph and arming them with rubber bullets will help the civilian population in high crime areas........
People always want to filch this onto the cops. It’s totally on the idiot that decided to run.
I come from old reproducers, paternal grandparents born before the civil war.
(Just checked that I’m still here!)
How do you know if it's a violent offender if he doesn't stop so you can ID him? Cops aren't mind readers, and the car had tinted windows. Concerned over his not being arrested (probably a chronic offender), he decided to put his daughter's life on the line to save his sorry a$$.
Totally agree. I support and admire the sacrifices of police, but I was on the other end of this at one point, and it changed my perspective quite a bit.
Years ago my wife was getting on the interstate after having stopped at the bank in our town. She noticed when she left the bank a police car speeding away with lights flashing. When she got on the interstate she noted that there were essentially no cars, and she thought this was very strange. She was in the left lane, and a car came flying by at extremely high speed, passing her on the left (using the shoulder). The car came so close to her, and was going so fast, that her car bounced up and down on the shocks and started swaying. Right after that multiple police cars, all traveling at equally high speed, passed her. Turns out that the police were chasing a burglary ‘suspect’, and that during this chase a police car had crashed and a police officer was killed. The police were so angry they were absolutely committed to catching this guy, but they didn't do enough to protect the public. They had closed some of the entrance ramps, but not all, and it put my wife is great danger.
I called the office of a very well-known Senator from our state, and complained. I spoke to one of his assistants, and told her that in the context of modern law enforcement they didn't need to put the public at risk, but could radio ahead for help, and even have a helicopter pursue. She said “so do you want us to let criminals get away?” I told her, ‘do you think that response is what the Senator would want to be broadcast on the news in this election year?’ She immediately asked my name, which I told her.
I was out of town when this happened, and was pretty shaken. I could have lost my wife. The police actually did call ahead and had a ‘spike’ strip planted across the interstate. It punctured the tires of the suspect’s car, and they caught him.
I'm just saying that police need to think of public safety, even when in hot pursuit.
It almost reminds me of Russian nesting dolls!
Ha!
The problem with your statement is that thieves can then say, if I speed I can get away with it. We can’t have that carte blanche for thieves; also it incentivizes them to speed away in cars which of course endangers people.
Of course no one’s life or injury is worth the recovery of stolen goods or a jury warrant or similar. But we can’t have a society where you know that if you speed away you get away with whatever you are in trouble for.
My car is insured.
If it were to be stolen, involved in a high speed chase that results in the death of your child, my car could be replaced, your child could not be replaced.
Your child has greater value than my car.
I thought she died because the man didn’t stop.
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