Family hail call for change in police tactics

Luke Wooster died when his car hit a bridge after a short police chase. Photo / Hawke's Bay Today

A high-level call for improvements to police pursuits procedure has been welcomed by the family of a teenager killed while fleeing police.

After reviewing police pursuits over five years, the Independent Police Conduct Authority says police need to give clearer guidance about when to begin chasing a motorist.

"Pursuits can begin over relatively minor offending, or general suspicion, and end in serious injury or death," said IPCA chairwoman Justice Lowell Goddard.

"In such cases, the benefits from pursuing and stopping an offender do not appear to have outweighed the risks."

Sara Wooster lost her 17-year-old brother Luke in 2007 when he crashed his Honda CRX into a bridge at high speed while trying to outrun police. She said she was glad to see Justice Goddard's comments.

Miss Wooster accepts her brother should not have been speeding, but says he was not a criminal and it was only the thought of having his new car taken off him that made him try to escape.

Police could have simply let him go, and visited him the next day, she said.

"I would rather have my brother locked up in the cells or something than organise a funeral again. And I'm sure a lot of people would agree with that."

The IPCA review found that few pursuits uncovered evidence of serious crimes, other than those associated with the offender's driving during the pursuit.

The decision for police to start pursuing someone should be based on known facts, rather than speculating about a driver's reasons for failing to stop, Justice Goddard said.

Assistant Commissioner Viv Rickard said police accepted Justice Goddard's recommendations.

He said a range of factors, including public safety, had to be taken into account.

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* About 2000 police pursuits take place each year.
* In the five years to last December, 24 people died and 91 were seriously injured in police pursuits.