9 News
DENVER — The Denver Police Department is testing a new technology that would allow officers to track the whereabouts of a fleeing suspect vehicle in order to make the arrest at a safer destination, rather than engaging in a high-speed pursuit.
DPD unveiled the new technology during a press conference Wednesday morning. The effort is aimed at reducing high-speed chases that could create a dangerous situation for the community, officers and the suspect.
“We won’t have to engage in near as many chases,” DPD Division Chief of Patrol Ron Thomas said. “There are situations where, because of community safety being paramount, where here we don’t engage in a chase – for a stolen car or some other reason why we’d want to make contact with a vehicle or individual. This will allow us to ultimately make that contact without creating a dangerous situation for citizens.”
Patrol vehicles equipped with the new technology would be able to use compressed air to deploy a non-lethal adhesive tag onto a fleeing suspect’s vehicle. Officers could then use the tracking technology to follow the vehicle to its designation and apprehend the suspect in a tactical and safe manner.
Full story: Tracker launched from DPD patrol vehicles could help reduce high-speed pursuits