Police unhappy with new pursuit rules

Frontline cops have slammed a change in the way police respond to fleeing drivers.

Police reviewed their fleeingdriver policy in December but downplayed the change when Stuff revealed it.

A spokeswoman said then the ‘‘slight rewording’’ of the policy was recognising police needed to better ‘‘articulate the intent’’ of the policy, so staff could apply it consistently. Stuff then saw a copy of the online training module officers were asked to complete.

The module, referred to as a ‘‘compliance course’’ for dealing with fleeing drivers, gives a number of scenarios. Officers are asked if they justify a pursuit. The two options are no and maybe.

Among the scenarios that would not be justified are: Wanted for burglary, a driver weaving across lanes, if police believed there was 3kg of meth in the car, a suspected stolen vehicle, and travelling at high speed.

An active shooter, kidnapping, and active and immediate threat are in the ‘‘maybe’’ section.

In a recent edition of Police News, Whakata¯ ne response manager Al Fenwick questioned if there was consultation with frontline staff, or thought given to strengthening punishment for failing to stop, as the current penalty was only a fine.

‘‘Why wasn’t there any media announcement letting the public know about plans to reduce the road toll through the rephrasing of the policy?

‘‘Was the lack of public fanfare a naive attempt to stop drunk drivers or car thieves finding out that all they have to do is not stop for us if they want to get away?’’

Fenwick said the culture around police pursuits had changed hugely for the better in the past 10 years. ‘‘The number of pursuits now abandoned continues to rise, while the percentage of pursuits ending in crashes continues to fall,’’ Fenwick said.

‘‘How does the rephrasing fit with the high-performance framework in which we enable our staff to be the best they can through fostering a culture of high trust?

‘‘Doesn’t this send a pretty clear message ... that although we ... talk about empowering and trusting them, when it comes to decisions about pursuits, clearly we don’t?’’

A lot of work had been done to better understand fleeing-driver events, road policing national manager Superintendent Steve Greally said. He said the revised policy prioritised safety over the immediate apprehension of a fleeing driver.