EL PASO, Texas ( KTEP) – An independent report commissioned by El Paso County comparing law enforcement pursuit policies found the Texas Department of Public Safety’s guidelines “inadequate” for failing to meet local as well as national standards.
The state’s pursuit policy fails to “prioritize public safety” or seek alternatives to dangerous high-speed chases by troopers, according to the County report presented to the El Paso County Commissioner’s court Monday, Jan. 6. According to the report, the policy “inappropriately” puts the decision to initiate high-speed pursuits on individual troopers.
The report comes on the heels of an investigation by KTEP News on the rise of dangerous DPS pursuits on highways, roads and in neighborhoods in El Paso, all part of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s border enforcement initiative Operation Lone Star. Texas state troopers pursue drivers suspected of transporting undocumented immigrants at speeds often reaching more than 100 miles an hour.
Texas DPS has repeatedly declined requests for an interview about the state’s pursuit policy.