NYPD Faces Backlash Over Car Chases After Fatal Cyclist Crash

Outrage over a cyclist’s death is igniting a new debate in New York over police chase protocols. The fatality occurred during a police pursuit, and the community where it happened is urgently calling for change. Balancing the risks and rewards of police chases is a complex issue without simple solutions.

Since January, there have been 38 non-highway chases in the 114th precinct of New York. That’s higher than all directly surrounding precincts. On October 22, one of those cases led to the death of cyclist Amanda Servedio, 36. Locals say that the police should have prioritized public safety over catching the suspects.

Read: California Cops Speak Out Against Tesla Police Cars, Call Them Unfit For Duty

Those suspects were fleeing a burglary, had obscured tags, and had struck two police cruisers in an effort to get away. At the same time, this chase happened on residential streets where countless pedestrians were walking, running, and of course, cycling.

“Conducting these high-speed vehicle pursuits in these residential areas is just a recipe for disaster. It endangers everyone on the road and this is not the first time it’s happened,” said cycling advocate Chong Bretillon to StreetsBlog.org. “The fact that it ended up with someone losing their life, you have to weigh the risks, and this was just risky regardless of what even happened before the chase.

According to a Reddit post surrounding a council meeting, Deputy Inspector Kenneth Gorman told attendees that “car chases are always a matter of balancing risk and reward.” Importantly, the police didn’t apprehend the burglary suspects so the chase led to no immediate arrests.

It’s worth noting that this is the same precinct where Antonio Ginestri gained notoriety. Ginestri is connected to the persona Squeeze.Benz and is allegedly the driver featured in several videos of reckless driving in this same area. Ginestri is also facing charges related to a string of ATM thefts. That is to say that chasing some suspects makes more sense than others. Nevertheless, those chases still introduce a safety risk to the public.

It would be easy to simply blame the fleeing suspect but data suggests the reality is more nuanced. As Carscoops has highlighted several times, police departments who investigate the efficacy of chases tend to find a lack of evidence to continue them in all but the most extreme circumstances. That begs the question: what are officers to do in situations like these?

Departments across the nation leverage several technologies that reduce the chance of a crash while enabling law enforcement to keep up with the suspect. These strategies include using drones, GPS trackers, and helicopters to follow suspects. Video below demonstrates that the NYPD does have a helicopter at its disposal. Perhaps it needs to use it more often.

Decades ago, law enforcement officers touted that “you can’t outrun the radio,” the thinking being that no matter how fast one person can drive, good police teamwork and strategies could catch people. Perhaps safety on streets in New York and elsewhere would improve if officers abode by that sort of ethos. 

Image Credit: CBS News