5 - Emergency Response & Pursuits 

5a) Emergency Response

Emergency Driving:

• While responding to an emergency, the officer may disregard certain Traffic Laws.

• While responding to an emergency, the officer should keep their emergency lights on, unless there is a valid reason not to.

• While responding to an emergency, the officer should generally keep their siren on while driving through areas where traffic or pedestrians could interfere with the response

  • This is especially true during responses in narrow areas, around corners, through intersections and areas with sidewalks

• The officer may not break any other laws (such as 9.8 Reckless Endangerment) that could cause injury or death to anyone else, unless the officer has encountered a direct threat to their own life

• When responding to an emergency, the officer needs to ensure that when they break a traffic law, it is done in a safe manner, eg;

  • When running a red light, the officer should slow down to ensure no cars will drive in front of them.

  • When disregarding yield- and stop signs, the officer should ensure that they won't collide with another vehicle or pedestrian.

  • When disregarding the speed limit, the officer must ensure enough time to brake, should an obstacle occur in front of them.

• When responding to an emergency, and disregarding the traffic laws, the officer is responsible for their driving and must not, at any time, cause harm to civilian life or property.

• Under no circumstances, is an officer allowed to respond, pursue or drive a vehicle on the wrong side of the highway. 

• Driving up off-ramps and down on-ramps against the natural flow of traffic should be avoided where possible; however, it is allowed in necessary emergency situations. While doing so, officers should exercise extreme caution and utilize both lights and sirens, accompanied by a reduced speed where applicable. This specific procedure applies only to going up off-ramps and down on-ramps, and not for any other scenarios.

5b) Pursuing a fleeing vehicle

When encountering a non-compliant suspect in a vehicle, the officer should initiate a pursuit if it is safe to do so. The officer should:

• Call for backup over the Police Radio. During this call, the officer should include the following information:

  • Car model, maker, colour, and body kits.

  • License plate (If available).

  • Current location and direction.

  • Suspected crimes. 

• Keep their lights and sirens on at all times to warn the public about the chase.

Use of Force during a pursuit must be done safely. When using force, the following should be considered:

• Danger of the suspect. Force may not be used unless the suspect poses a serious threat to the public.

  • Examples of a serious threat include Reckless Endangerment, driving on the wrong side of the Highway, or hitting pedestrians/officers during the pursuit or prior engagement.

  • Force may be approved if suspects inside the vehicle are wanted or pursued for a serious felony that involves a violent crime.

• Location. Using force in a crowded area with pedestrians is generally not allowed.

• Use of Force must be approved by either a supervisor (or the highest-ranking officer on duty if there are no supervisors).

• Types of Force include:

  • Spike Strips.

  • Roadblocks.

  • Ramming, Pitting, or Boxing In.

  • Shooting the fleeing vehicle.

Spike Strips & Road Blocks:

Spike Strips and Road Blocks are effective tools, and are often used together. However, when placing a roadblock and/or using spike strips, there is a serious risk that the fleeing driver will lose control of their vehicle. Therefore, the following must be considered:

• The safety of all officers.

• The safety of pedestrians or civilian traffic.

• When setting up a roadblock, you must ensure to leave a gap for civilian traffic to pass through. 

• When using Spike Strips, you may not place them down before you have Visual confirmation of the fleeing vehicle.

  • After the vehicle has passed the spike strips, it must be picked up. The only exception is immediate life-threatening situations.

Ramming, Pitting or Boxing In:

Coming into contact with a fleeing vehicle can be very dangerous. Therefore, this should only be attempted after Spike Strips have been attempted, or the situation directly calls for it. When performing one of these maneuvers, the following must be considered:

• The safety of everyone around the scene.

• Any form of forceful contact, that could cause the fleeing driver to lose control, is prohibited in populated areas such as through the City, Business Main Street, or the Suburbs Streets. 

• The best area to perform these maneuvers are the highway with the median, to ensure the car will not hit any oncoming traffic.

• If the safety of the public cannot be ensured, no form of forceful contact is acceptable.

Shooting the fleeing vehicle:

Using firearms should be the absolute last resort when nothing else has worked, and the driver is posing a severe threat to the public or officer's life. When shooting at a vehicle, the following must be considered:

• The safety of everyone around the scene.

• Firing on the vehicle, you should generally aim for:

  • The tyres.

  • The engine.