tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post6617403884898354059..comments2024-03-25T20:06:39.794-05:00Comments on Grits for Breakfast: A Suggestion for Reducing Life Threatening Risks to OfficersGritsforbreakfasthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10152152869466958902noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-32738904146484190902009-01-08T10:03:00.000-06:002009-01-08T10:03:00.000-06:00Interesting post Grits.You would be surprised, wel...Interesting post Grits.<BR/><BR/>You would be surprised, well maybe not, at the Texas le agencies who do not have a written policy and procedure on pursuit or emergency driving.<BR/><BR/>And those agencies continue to receive liability insurance coverage. Amazing.<BR/><BR/>And as much as I hate to see new laws created and unfunded mandates, the lege may have to get involved in this issue and compel all agencies to have a written policy and state mandated training. Doing nothing will certainly cause us to see one day a uniform pursuit policy in this state which may not be that bad.<BR/><BR/>As an le officer myself, officers who choose to pursue violators for misdemeanor offenses and non-violent felonies and later are involved in an accident with innocent civilians should not be granted qualified or official immunity.<BR/><BR/>Dallas PD has a more revised restrictive policy that speaks on this. It may have been met with unfavor, but know doubt is in the best interest of the officers and the public and will help to promote the statutee that says an officer will drive with due regard for the safety of others.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-78423443568219430082009-01-08T09:38:00.000-06:002009-01-08T09:38:00.000-06:00The first Texas peace officer officer death occurr...The first Texas peace officer officer death occurred Tuesday in Dallas. DPD Sr. Corporal Norman Smith and other officers were attempting to serve a felony warrant when he was shot.<BR/>http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/010709dnmetofficershot.45d6022c.html<BR/><BR/>From DMN reported Steve Blow, I was also jolted by the bitter irony: One day, the chief of police is at City Hall, making the happy announcement of a major drop in crime. The very next day, he stands outside a hospital emergency room, struggling for words equal to his grief. <BR/><BR/>My condolences to the family of Cpl. Norman Smith.<BR/><BR/>Matthew 5:9: Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-75714669569662946022009-01-08T09:14:00.000-06:002009-01-08T09:14:00.000-06:00Incidentally, the other great risk faced by office...Incidentally, the other great risk faced by officers doing traffic enforcement, is getting run over. I was the original author of Texas's "Shoulder Responsibility Law," which our Governor saw fit to rename the "Move Over Law" even though it does not necessarily require you to move over.<BR/><BR/>Whatever it's called, don't forget to slow down OR change lanes when you see an officer on the shoulder of the roadway. I cannot begin to tell you how important this is for officer safety.Don Dicksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15297382689845965952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-17817468255272859542009-01-08T09:10:00.000-06:002009-01-08T09:10:00.000-06:00I am an ardent supporter of more restrictive pursu...I am an ardent supporter of more restrictive pursuit policies, and this often chafes my own constituency, many of whom readily admit that one of the things they love about police work is their perceived license to drive fast.<BR/><BR/>The same judges who will stand the law on its head to find a way to grant an officer qualified or official immunity in a shooting case, will not lift a finger to help the officer who has killed or injured an innocent bystander in a pursuit case.<BR/><BR/>I keep telling these guys that when a violator runs, that is why God gave them radios, and helicopters.<BR/><BR/>Tightening up pursuit policies saves innocent lives, and officers' lives too. And ending a pursuit does NOT mean that the violator has necessarily "gotten away." We'll get him some other way.Don Dicksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15297382689845965952noreply@blogger.com