Number
FPC212429
Version
ORIGINAL
Reference
Sponsor
THE VICE CHAIR
Title
Resolution recommending modification of Milwaukee Police Department Standard Operating Procedure 660 - Vehicle Pursuits and Emergency Vehicle Operations.
Analysis
This resolution recommends that the Milwaukee Police Department or the Common Council modify Milwaukee Police Department Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) 660 - Vehicle Pursuits and Emergency Vehicle Operations. In its current form, SOP 660 permits department members to engage in vehicle pursuits when the member knows or has probable cause to believe, among other things, that a vehicle is engaged in reckless driving, including reckless driving observed before the initiation of a traffic stop or after an attempted stop. This resolution recommends that SOP 660 be modified to prohibit department members from engaging in vehicle pursuits for reckless driving that is observed after an attempted traffic stop. The resolution also recommends that SOP 660 be modified to explicitly provide that if the continuation of a vehicle pursuit for reckless driving increases the danger to the public, the department member shall terminate the pursuit.
Body
Whereas, vehicle pursuits have been characterized by the United States Department of Justice as “possibly the most dangerous of all ordinary police activities”; and
Whereas, vehicle pursuits by the Milwaukee Police Department have significantly increased since 2017, reaching yearly average totals of 974 pursuits between 2018 and 2025; and
Whereas, these totals represent more than a three-fold increase compared to the average number of pursuits during the previous three years; and
Whereas, in 2025, 33% (316) of vehicle pursuits by the Milwaukee Police Department involved vehicle crashes; and
Whereas, in 2025, vehicle pursuits by the Milwaukee Police Department involved injuries to individuals in 222 incidents, including 156 incidents where a pursuit subject or their passengers ...
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