FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE OAKLAND POLICE DEPARTMENT’S (OPD) PURSUIT POLICY
Q: Why is the OPC being asked to review the OPD Pursuit Policy?
A: City Council adopted a resolution brought forward by Council Members Kevin Jenkins and Treva Reid, directing the Oakland Police Commission to review and propose changes to the Oakland Police Department's pursuits policy. The City Council asked that the Oakland Police Commission bring forth a report forward with its proposed changes. A public community forum was held on July 31st, to gain input into any potential changes to the current policy. A presentation was made by Commissioner Wilson Riles in September 2024, during the Public Safety Committee meeting, indicating no changes to the current OPD pursuit policy, Department General Order J-4, Pursuit Driving. The commission unanimously voted this way following information we received from subject matter experts and OPD themselves, that the policy was in line with national standards.
Q: What is a pursuit?
A: Per the Pursuit Policy (Departmental General Order J-4, “Pursuit Driving”), a Vehicle Pursuit is an event involving one or more law enforcement officers attempting to apprehend a suspected or actual violator of the law in a motor vehicle while the driver is using evasive tactics, such as high-speed driving, driving off a highway or turning suddenly and failing to yield to the officer’s signal to stop. This policy does not prohibit OPD from engaging and attempting to stop criminal activity when observed.
Q: Is it true that Oakland Police Department officers are prohibited from pursuing crime suspects in vehicles?
A: No. Officers may initiate Vehicle Pursuits of crime suspects, but only when there is reasonable suspicion to believe the fleeing individual committed a violent forcible crime and/or a crime involving the use of a firearm, or when there is probable cause that the individual is in possession of a firearm.
Q: When must officers stop a Vehicle Pursuit?
A: Vehicle Pursuits must be terminated whenever the totality of circumstances known (or which should be known) to law enforcement personnel during the pursuit indicates that the risks in continuing the pursuit appear to outweigh the risks associated with ending the pursuit. Currently, it is the officer's individual responsibility to consider all 19 "Risk Factors" in determining whether to initiate and/or continue a vehicle pursuit, or the "Duties of Involved Personnel." 19 risk-factors to be evaluated: 1. The volume of vehicular and pedestrian traffic in the area; 2. Traffic conditions; 3. Location of pursuit; 4. Safety of the public in the area of the pursuit (e.g., the presence of children, the elderly, or disabled, the proximity to hospital or school zones in the vicinity of the pursuit); 5. Safety of the pursuing officers; 6. Speeds of both officer and suspect vehicles; 7. Familiarity of the officer and supervisor with the area of the pursuit; 8. Road and weather conditions; 9. Time of day; 10. Quality of communications between the pursuing units, the Communications Section, and/or supervisor; 11. The performance capabilities of the police vehicle or the operation of the emergency lights and siren; 12. Availability of air or field support; 13. Whether the officer has a ride-along passenger with him/her; 14. Whether the suspect is known and can be apprehended at a later time; 15. Whether the suspect is known to be a juvenile; 16. When a non-suspect vehicle and/or pedestrian accident has occurred during a pursuit; 17. The safety of occupants in the fleeing vehicle; 18. The distance between the pursuit and fleeing vehicles is so great that further pursuit is futile; and 19. The pursued vehicle’s location is no longer known.
Q: Why are officers only allowed to initiate Vehicle Pursuits in limited circumstances?
A: The Oakland Police Department modified its pursuit policy in 2014 due to an audit report finding that vehicle pursuits led to frequent vehicle crashes and injuries to officers, bystanders, and the fleeing suspects in numbers that did not support continuing to permit pursuits for suspected non-violent offenses. Special Order 9212, authored by Chief LeRonne Armstrong on December 16'th, 2022, ordered that the following language take effect immediately, and that it be included at the next formal policy revision. "Vehicle pursuits shall be terminated if the speed of the pursued or pursuing vehicles reaches or exceeds 50 miles per hour (mph) on any roadway or off-road area that is not a controlled access freeway (hereafter "city streets") unless permission to exceed 50 mph is given by a watch commander or command officer."
Q: How does the Oakland Police Department’s pursuit policy compare to the pursuit policies of other police departments?
A: The Department’s pursuit policy is modeled on the San Jose Police Department’s Vehicle Pursuit Policy. The Long Beach Police Department, Chicago Police Department, Atlanta Police Department, New Orleans Police Department, and the Michigan State Police have similar Vehicle Pursuit Policies.
Q: What is the benefit to the public in the Department having a more limited pursuit policy?
A: Police pursuits involving high-speed or evasive driving present risks beyond the lives of the fleeing suspect(s) and pursuing officers. When officers chase crime suspects at high speed in densely populated urban areas, the lives of innocent bystanders are also placed at risk. Limiting the circumstances in which officers may initiate a high-speed vehicle pursuit places greater value on the preservation of human life over the desire to apprehend nonviolent criminals.
Q: What is the status of the pursuit policy?
A: In September 2024, the Oakland Police Commission reviewed the existing pursuit policy and did not recommend making changes to the policy. Currently, the Oakland Police Department and the City Administrator are developing a revised policy to present to the Police Commission for its review at our January 23rd regular meeting.
