Why drivers in this state are free to speed away from patrol cops without fear of being caught

Drivers inside Washington state are free to run from patrol officers without fear of being caught — a luxury that will soon change when a new state law goes into effect.

A controversial state law enacted in July 2021 limited police officers from pursuing suspects, leading to nearly 8,000 incidents of drivers fleeing law enforcement.

But the chase will resume on Thursday, when police in the state will have the power to apprehend suspected criminals afterwards agencies have seen a significant increase in the number of fleeing drivers over the past three years.

‘WWe’ve now had three years where the word is, ‘The police can’t chase you,'” said Chris Loftis, communications director for the Washington State Patrol. “Well, I think you’ll see people surprised when the police chase you.”

He added: ‘We are hopeful that we will change driving behavior for the better and for the better.’

On Thursday, police forces in the state will now have the power to arrest suspected criminals, three years after agencies saw a significant increase in the number of fleeing drivers

In July 2021, lawmakers in Washington passed legislation requiring certain criteria to be met for a police pursuit to occur.

The 2021 laws were based on the argument that police pursuits caused more harm than good and could lead to accidents. The legislation also noted that people of color were targeted – usually for low-level offenses, King5 News reported.

According to the Washington State Patrol, drivers fled from troopers 7,941 times between July 26, 2021 and March 31 of this year.

In 2020, the Washington State Patrol conducted 1,689 pursuits — that number dropped significantly when the 2021 law went into effect.

Due to the law, troopers were legally unable to pursue the fleeing drivers because the suspected crimes did not meet the strict criteria for police pursuits set by the Washington State Legislature.

Before the 2021 restriction, agencies did not track how many motorists failed to stop for police because lights and sirens would automatically force a driver to stop. But that changed after the controversial state law went into effect.

Loftis explained that word of the yearsTate’s no-chase policy quickly spread among criminals, which is when the agency began documenting it.

‘I saw a spike. Actually, it looked more like a rocket,” he said. “It went from a number so low that we didn’t have to code it that first year to something in the thousands.”

In 2023, the State Patrol had the largest number of runaway drivers

He also told the news station that police “lost the number of potential negative impacts of pursuits, but then we also increased the number of times people involved in criminal activity got away from us.”

During the three-year period, 2023 saw the highest number of flight incidents, with a whopping 3,337.

Thanks in part to these numbers, lawmakers lowered the threshold for police to pursue a suspect, from probable cause to reasonable suspicion for limited crimes.

These limited crimes were considered violent crimes, sex crimes or escape, DUI, vehicular assault, and domestic violence in the first, second, third, or fourth degrees.

Loftis said car thefts, vandalism and other property crimes have increased during this time.

“People just ignored the lights. They just ignored the sirens,” Loftis said.

In March, the state House voted 77-20 to approve Initiative 2113. The initiative was subsequently passed by the Senate by a vote of 36 to 13.

Initiative 2113 will restore a police officer’s authority to pursue a driver, when there is reasonable suspicion that someone has broken the law

Agencies are preparing for the change.

Lakewood police say drivers fled from police 727 times between July 2021 and March 31, 2024, city data shows.

“It was just way off the charts, and we had never seen that before,” Lakewood Assistant Police Chief John Unfred said.

‘These are people who escape justice. Once they leave, it’s hard to find out who they are – who’s behind the wheel.”

He noted that many of the drivers who felt that the officers were suspected of stealing cars after the 2021 law change.

“We literally have the suspect in front of us, and there’s nothing we can do about it,” he said. “It gave them courage.”

Later this week, as the new law came into effect, Unfred said “we’re going to essentially return our policy to what it was before the 2021 law change.” But, he said, they will also take into account what the officers will do.

Before 2021, he said his department averaged nine pursuits every four months and was “already quite restrictive.”

He added, “We haven’t chased everything.”

Both agencies – Lakewood PD and Washington State Patrol – will proceed with caution and require officers to weigh the value of a police opportunity against the potential danger to the public.

Loftis added, “We’ve always tried to find the balance between, ‘Where does the risk outweigh the reward of catching this person?’

Unfred said his department has already seen a change in criminal behavior since the law was changed.

He said in part, “I think the word is already going around among the suspects that the law has changed, and you have to be careful.”