What procedures do you recommend for handling citizens following–or chasing–someone in their car, either for a criminal offense or traffic violation?
A. First, you have to decide how you really want citizens to act in either of these cases. My suggestion would be to completely rule out following, chasing, pursuing or otherwise taking action for any traffic violation, including DUI. The dispatcher should obtain whatever information the caller may have (CYMBL, etc.), occupants’ description and direction of last travel. But after that, they should be told not to follow the vehicle or take any additional action. Now, you have a choice on what advice to give a caller reporting a criminal act, and you may wish to sub-divide that into advice for violent and non-violent criminal acts. My suggestion is “wave off” the citizen for non-violent criminal offenses. For violent offenses, you should devise an “advisory” for the calltaker to give the citizen, essentially advising them of the danger, and telling them, “If you chose to continue….” Michigan’s Emergency Telephone Service Committee has posted its recommended procedure for just such inci
