Lubbock Police Chief Greg Stevens released a brief statement Thursday concerning a police chase on November 29 that ended in the death of a suspect.
Shane David Warren led officers on a chase from Walmart at South Loop 289 and Quaker Avenue to the intersection of East Loop 289 and East 19th Street. At least one officer documented speeds of up to 130 miles per hour. Warren lost control and crashed. He was ejected during the crash and pronounced dead at the scene.
The initial reason for an officer to pursue Warren was a theft at Walmart, but officers quickly figured out he was driving a stolen car.
Chief Stevens said, “We have completed the review of the November 29th police pursuit which resulted in a fatal crash and death of the suspect.”
Stevens also said, “The officers involved in the pursuit followed LPD policy as well as state laws and made sound decisions based on the information available to them as they initiated the pursuit and as they continuously evaluated its progress.”
EverythingLubbock.com requested all reports and a copy of the LPD pursuit policy. Portions of the policy were redacted and the office of Texas Attorney General allowed the LPD to keep some information confidential.
The reports seemed to demonstrate the officers followed those portions of the policy that are open to the public.
The policy says, “Officers may begin or continue pursuit if they reasonably believe the need to immediately capture the suspect is greater than the risk to the public or themselves.”
However, the policy also says the pursuit must be terminated if the risk to the public outweighs the need to immediately catch the suspect.
Officers were chasing Warren at about 2:30 a.m. One of the officers wrote that traffic was light and danger to the public was minimal.
The reports indicated that officers were far enough back that they could barely see Warren’s stolen car ahead of them.
The policy says there are two ways to terminate a chase.
“Termination may be the most reasonable way to protect the lives and property of the public, officers, and suspects. Officers may terminate pursuits by abandoning them or forcibly stopping suspect vehicles when authorized by a supervisor.”
In other words, police can intentionally crash into a suspect’s vehicle to stop a pursuit.
Police supervisors are obligated to continually assess the risk during a pursuit.