Roads Policing Pursuit Policy PDF

Police College RP17 Roads Policing RP16 Pursuit Introduction “It is recommended that all response officers receive an awareness of the Police Pursuit Policy to enable them to assist pursuit trained drive...

Police College RP17 Roads Policing RP16 Pursuit Introduction “It is recommended that all response officers receive an awareness of the Police Pursuit Policy to enable them to assist pursuit trained drivers in ensuring that relevant information is immediately communicated to the Control Room.” Police Ombudsman Northern Ireland. Definition A police driver is deemed to be in pursuit when: A driver indicates by their actions or continuance of their manner of driving that they have no intention of stopping for police, and the police driver believes that the driver of the subject vehicle is aware of the requirement to stop and decides to continue behind the subject vehicle with a view to either reporting its progress or stopping it. When a situation falls within the definition of a pursuit, officers need to decide whether a pursuit is justified, proportionate and conforms to the principle of least intrusion. Points to Prove The subject has no intention of stopping for police. The subject is aware of the requirement to stop. Police actions were justified, proportionate and least intrusive. The National Decision Model (NDM) must be applied when consideration is being given whether to pursue a vehicle. OFFICIAL [SENSITIVE] Page 144  Police College RP17 Pursuit Criteria The following should be taken into account, in accordance with the National Decision Model (NDM): The current level of risk posed by the pursued driver. Whether or not the suspect’s identity is known. The seriousness of any known offence committed or suspected. The weight of intelligence as to whether the suspects are, or are likely to be, armed. Whether the driver is, or appears to be, a juvenile or whether it appears that other vulnerable persons are in the vehicle. The type of vehicle being pursued, e.g. car or motorcycle. The current/anticipated route in respect of the time of day, road, weather, traffic, specific considerations such as schools, licenced premises or off road terrain. The availability of tactical options. Control room supervisors decisions are based on the information you transmit. Meaning of Pursuit Terms Observe and report - Prior to a pursuit starting there may be an opportunity to observe and report the movements of the subject vehicle. During this time other resources can be directed into positions where they may be able to assist, leading to a safe resolution. There are two types of pursuit, Spontaneous and Pre-Planned. OFFICIAL [SENSITIVE] Page 145  Police College RP17 Spontaneous – These occur when the actions of the suspect driver in deciding to flee are triggered by the presence of a police vehicle, and there is no prior warning or sufficient time to develop a specific strategy and plans, regardless of whether or not the officer made an initial requirement for the vehicle to stop. Pre-planned – Pre-planned operations refer to situations where the potential for a pursuit is foreseen. If the proposed future actions of the police carry a foreseeable risk of pursuit and there has been time to develop a strategy, identify tactics and produce contingency plans, any such pursuit is regarded as a pre-planned operation. Terminology Subject – Vehicle which is being pursued. Left, Left, Left/Right, Right, Right - Indicates that subject has made a left / right turn. Nearside/Offside – Refers to identified premises or landmarks when there is no deviation from the subject vehicle. Temporarily Held – Subject stopped in traffic. Not One, Not One, Not Two, Not Two - Indicates the subject is negotiating a roundabout and has passed the first, second exit. Taken First… - Indicates the subject vehicle has taken first exit. Going Round Again - Second circuit of roundabout. It must be remembered that this information/commentary will always be given on the direction and dictated to the untrained officer by the pursuit trained driver who is ultimately responsible for the risk assessment and criteria. OFFICIAL [SENSITIVE] Page 146  Police College RP17 Roads Policing RP17 Registration Plates Registration plates (number plates). The number plates on your vehicle must:  be made from a reflective material  display black characters on a white background (front plate)  display black characters on a yellow background (rear plate)  not have a background pattern  be marked to show who supplied the number plate  be marked with a British Standard number - this is ‘BS AU 145e’ for plates fitted after 1 September 2021 The characters must not be removable or reflective. If your number plates were fitted after 1 September 2021, they must also be a single shade of black. Your number plates can also:  have 3D (raised) characters  display certain flags, symbols and identifiers  display a green flash, if you have a zero-emission vehicle The legislation covering registration marks is contained within the Road Vehicles (Display of Registration Marks) Regulations 2001. This piece of legislation sets out the requirements in relation to the font used, the size of each character, the spacing between characters and the space around the edge of the registration plates as well as the colours to be used and what else is allowed to be on a registration plate. These requirements have changed significantly since the Motor Car Act of 1903 which brought registration plates into existence. Our current registration plate standards have been in use since 1st September 2021. These represented only minor changes and a tightening of what is allowed from the standards that had been in place since 2001 and as such will cover the vast majority of vehicles that are currently on the roads. The current legislation combined with the afore mentioned British OFFICIAL [SENSITIVE] Page 148  Police College RP17 Standards BS AU 145d and 145e sets out exactly what is allowed on a registration plate. For UK registered vehicles, the prescribed font is known as ‘Charles Wright 2001’, however other fonts that are substantially similar to this are permitted though these are not specified. (Charles Wright font 2001) All vehicles registered on or after 1st September 2001 must display a reflective white registration plate on the front of the vehicle, with specified exceptions eg motorcycles, and a reflective yellow registration plate to the rear of the vehicle. The characters on these registration plates should be in a non-reflective black. The rear registration plate must also be lit between sunset and sunrise. Since 1st September 2001 vehicles registered on or after that date the size and font of the text for cars, Lorries, buses etc has to conform to the following standards: Letters have to be 79mm high and 50mm wide except the letter I or number 1. Each character has to have a stroke (thickness) with of 14mm. There must be 11mm between letters in the same group and 33mm between the different groups. Finally there must be a minimum of 11mm space between the font and the edge of the plate. OFFICIAL [SENSITIVE] Page 149  Police College RP17 On motorcycle plates the required measurements are as follows: Letters have to be at least 64mm high and 44mm wide, except the letter I or number 1. Each character has to have a stroke with of 11mm. There must be 10mm between letters. There must be 13mm between the vertical groups of characters. Finally there must be a minimum of 11mm between the font and the edge of the plate. Motorcycles and motor tricycles registered on or after 1 September 2001 must only display a number plate at the rear of the vehicle. OFFICIAL [SENSITIVE] Page 150