Bill Text: MI HB4648 | 2009-2010 | 95th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Traffic control; violations; motor vehicle pursuits by peace officers; regulate. Creates new act.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2009-03-24 - Printed Bill Filed 03/20/2009 [HB4648 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2009-HB4648-Introduced.html
HOUSE BILL No. 4648
March 19, 2009, Introduced by Rep. Johnson and referred to the Committee on Judiciary.
A bill to regulate motor vehicle pursuits by law enforcement
agencies; and to prescribe certain powers and duties of certain
local and state officers and agencies.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the
"Flowers, Pierce, and Berry law".
Sec. 2. As used in this act:
(a) "Boxing in" means a deliberate offensive tactic by 2 or
more pursuing motor vehicles to force a pursued vehicle in a
specific direction, or to force the pursued vehicle to stop or
reduce speed accomplished by the pursuing motor vehicles, while
moving, maneuvering into a place in front of, behind, or beside the
pursued vehicle.
(b) "Collateral pursuit" means a deliberate offensive tactic
by 1 or more pursuing motor vehicles driving on roads or streets
that parallel the road or street on which the pursued vehicle is
traveling.
(c) "Imminent peril" means that an immediate injury or loss of
life is about to occur, or is near-at-hand, or is certain,
immediate, and impending. Peril that is remote, uncertain, or
contingent or is a mere possibility of injury or loss of life is
not sufficient to create imminent peril.
(d) "Initiation" or "initiating" of a motor vehicle pursuit
means that point in time when the traffic violator recognizes a
peace officer is attempting to stop him or her and does not include
intercepting or overtaking.
(e) "Intercepting" means the activation of emergency lights or
siren, or both, at the discretion of the peace officer to notify a
traffic violator of a peace officer's motor vehicle presence and to
cause the traffic violator to stop as quickly and safely as
possible.
(f) "Overtaking" means the active attempt by a peace officer
to catch up to and stop a traffic violator before there is
recognition by the traffic violator that the peace officer is
attempting to stop him or her.
(g) "Paralleling" means a deliberate offensive tactic by 1 or
more patrol motor vehicles to drive alongside the pursued vehicle
that is in motion.
(h) "Peace officer" means a sheriff or sheriff's deputy, a
village or township marshal, an officer of the police department of
any city, village, or township, an officer of the Michigan state
police, or any other individual who is trained and certified
pursuant to the commission on law enforcement standards act, 1965
PA 203, MCL 28.601 to 28.616.
(i) "Pursue", "pursuit", or "motor vehicle pursuit" means an
active attempt by a peace officer while operating a motor vehicle
to apprehend a suspect who is also operating a motor vehicle, while
the suspect is trying to avoid capture by using high speed driving
or other evasive tactics, including, but not limited to, driving
off a highway, making a sudden or unexpected movement, or driving
on the wrong side of the roadway.
(j) "Ramming" means a deliberate act by the driver of a
vehicle to forcibly strike another vehicle in an attempt to stop or
disable the other vehicle.
Sec. 3. (1) A peace officer may pursue a vehicle if there is
reason to believe, or if there is a determination that, imminent
peril exists. The commission of a traffic infraction alone does not
qualify as imminent peril under this subsection.
(2) A peace officer shall not engage in a pursuit that does
not qualify under subsection (1).
Sec. 4. A peace officer shall not pursue a motor vehicle under
any of the following circumstances:
(a) The peace officer is carrying in his or her vehicle a
prisoner or any other person who is not an authorized ride-along.
(b) The peace officer is on a call that should take
precedence.
(c) A peace officer's supervisor advises the peace officer not
to pursue.
(d) The peace officer initiates or participates in the pursuit
without having on an approved forward-facing emergency light or
siren.
(e) The pursued vehicle does not represent an imminent peril
from other than the traffic condition being created by the pursued
vehicle as it flees.
Sec. 5. All of the following guidelines apply to a pursuit of
a vehicle by a peace officer:
(a) The danger created by the flight of the suspect does not
constitute justification for the pursuit.
(b) A peace officer shall continually question whether the
seriousness of the offense committed or being committed justifies
continuation of the pursuit.
(c) A peace officer shall consider the need for enhanced
safety in residential or school areas.
(d) When approaching an intersection where signal lights or
stop signs control the flow of traffic, a peace officer shall obey
the signal light or stop sign at the intersection until the officer
is certain that all traffic has yielded the right-of-way.
Sec. 6. (1) All of the following apply to a motor vehicle
pursuit incident:
(a) A pursuit is limited to no more than 2 pursuit motor
vehicles, excluding aircraft.
(b) A peace officer operating a motorcycle who initiates a
pursuit shall withdraw when a peace officer's motor vehicle has
joined the pursuit. A peace officer operating a motorcycle who is
relieved from the pursuit shall not proceed to the termination
point of the pursuit, unless directed to do so by a supervisor.
(c) A peace officer in another motor vehicle that is not 1 of
the 2 immediate pursuit motor vehicles shall stay clear of the
pursuit. If authorized by a supervisor, a peace officer in another
motor vehicle may trail at the posted speed limits while observing
all traffic laws.
(d) Collateral pursuits are permitted only under the
authorization of a supervisor, and the peace office shall obey all
traffic laws.
(e) A peace officer in support of a pursuit shall obey all
traffic laws while proceeding to strategic positions.
(f) If a person is injured or injuries are suspected or likely
as a result of a collision, the primary pursuit peace officer or
supervisor shall identify all officers present and document their
involvement.
(2) If a motor vehicle pursuit that began in 1 county or
municipality crosses into the jurisdiction of another county or
municipality for which the notice under section 7(1)(a) was not
given, the peace officer shall give the notice required under
section 7(1)(a) to the dispatcher in the other county or
municipality. If the supervisor of the law enforcement agency in
the other county or municipality directs the peace officer to
terminate the pursuit, the peace officer shall comply with that
order.
Sec. 7. During a motor vehicle pursuit, a peace officer shall
comply with all of the following procedures:
(a) The peace officer initiating the pursuit shall immediately
notify the dispatcher that the officer is in a motor vehicle
pursuit and shall report the following information:
(i) Known violation or reason for the pursuit.
(ii) Description of the pursued vehicle.
(iii) Location and direction of travel of the pursued vehicle.
(iv) Speed of the pursued vehicle.
(v) Number of known occupants in the pursued vehicle.
(vi) Type of weapons in the pursued vehicle, if known.
(b) Each peace officer in a pursuit is accountable for the
operation of his or her motor vehicle.
(c) A peace officer joining an ongoing pursuit shall
immediately notify the dispatcher that there are 2 peace officer
motor vehicles involved in the pursuit.
(d) A peace officer shall receive authorization for
participation in an ongoing pursuit. Authorization is never to be
presumed. Authorization to join a pursuit requires an explicit
verbal authorization by the supervisor via the motor vehicle radio.
(e) Maximum use of any law enforcement aircraft shall be made
as quickly as possible.
(f) A peace officer involved in a pursuit shall not discharge
his or her firearm while either the pursued vehicle or pursuit
motor vehicle is in motion.
(g) A peace officer shall not attempt to stop a pursued
vehicle by boxing in, ramming, or heading off, or driving parallel
to, the pursued vehicle. A supervisor may authorize these actions
if, in his or her opinion, the action would bring about the
successful termination of the pursuit and lessen the peace
officer's, suspect's, or public's exposure to imminent peril.
(h) A peace officer shall not attempt to form a roadblock by
slowing traffic in front of the pursued vehicle.
Sec. 8. A peace officer shall discontinue a motor vehicle
pursuit under any of the following circumstances:
(a) There is a clear danger to the public or to the pursuing
peace officer when taking into consideration all of the following
factors:
(i) The seriousness of the original offense and its
relationship to the continued risk to the public, peace officer, or
the fleeing person.
(ii) The safety of the public in the area of the pursuit.
(iii) The volume of vehicle and pedestrian traffic.
(iv) The quality of road and weather conditions, speed of other
vehicles, time of day, and location.
(v) The quality of radio communications and capabilities of
the law enforcement motor vehicles involved.
(b) The peace officer is unable to see the pursued vehicle, or
the distance between the pursued vehicle and the pursuing motor
vehicle is so great that further pursuit is futile.
(c) The suspect is identified and may be apprehended at a
later time.
(d) The supervisor directs the peace officer to terminate the
pursuit. The termination of the pursuit does not prohibit the peace
officer from continuing to follow the pursued vehicle while
observing all traffic laws.
Sec. 9. (1) A law enforcement dispatcher shall immediately
notify a supervisor of a peace officer's motor vehicle pursuit. The
supervisor shall assume command of the pursuit, including, if
applicable, the termination of a pursuit.
(2) In allowing a pursuit to continue, a supervisor shall
carefully consider the seriousness of the offense committed or
being committed, the danger presented to a peace officer and the
public, prevailing traffic conditions, pedestrian traffic, speed of
the vehicles involved, and other relevant factors.
(3) A supervisor may allow a pursuit to continue only after
the risks created by the pursuit have been carefully weighed
against the need to continue the pursuit.
(4) A supervisor shall complete a written review and analysis
of a pursuit within 15 days of the pursuit, which shall be made
public at that time.
(5) All reviews and analyses of pursuits shall be examined for
subject matter of benefit in training personnel for future
operations. A supervisor's review shall answer at least the
following questions in narrative form:
(a) What was the reason for the pursuit?
(b) What were the conditions of the pursuit, for example,
traffic conditions, time of day, vehicle speeds, number of peace
officers involved, and number of law enforcement motor vehicles
involved?
(c) Were there any exceptions to the written policy? If so,
what were they and why did they occur?
(d) Was any action taken against the pursued vehicle, for
example, ramming or roadblock?
(e) If personnel or motor vehicles from other law enforcement
agencies assisted in the pursuit, how many personnel and motor
vehicles from those agencies responded, and what role did the
assisting agencies have in the pursuit?
(f) Were there any violations of the law?
Sec. 10. (1) All traffic safety programs that use state funds
shall include a section that examines the public safety risks of
peace officer motor vehicle pursuits and the punishment that
results from evading a peace officer.
(2) A law enforcement agency shall adopt guidelines and
procedures regarding a motor vehicle pursuit by a peace officer
that, at a minimum, comply with this act.
(3) When necessary to achieve public safety, a law enforcement
agency may enhance its guidelines and procedures with respect to a
pursuit of a motor vehicle by a peace officer beyond the
requirements of this act.
