Houston Police Revise Pursuit Policy After Deadly Crash
As required by department policy and state law, the chief said an officer may engage in a vehicle pursuit only if the officer determines in good faith the need to immediately apprehend the suspect outweighs the risk of harm to the officer and the public.
Houston Police Chief Troy Finner has released a revised vehicle pursuit for police on Thursday.
On Sept. 7, the mother of a Houston Police Department sergeant was killed when two carjackers fleeing from police crashed into two vehicles at a red light in southwest Houston. The drivers of the two vehicles were transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Click2Houston reports.
Finner said he called on lawmakers around the nation to increase penalties for people that are fleeing in vehicles, causing danger to the community. He also discussed the policy with lawmakers on the way officers should handle situations like this.
As required by department policy and state law, Finner said an officer may engage in a vehicle pursuit only if the officer determines in good faith, under the circumstances the need to immediately apprehend the suspect outweighs the risk of harm to the officer or the public in engaging in a pursuit.
“If the risk of injury outweighs the needs to immediately apprehend the suspect, officers and supervisors alike, shall terminate the pursuit,” he said.
“We need to be smarter, still proactive and intentional in fighting crime in our city, we should not pursue every vehicle that flees from us,” Finner said. “We don’t have to give up the search of the suspect when we terminate the pursuit -- that should continue.”
More Patrol

NLEOMF Honors September 2026 Officers of the Month
Four Bradenton Police Department officers were selected as the NLEOMF Officers of the Month for September 2026 for a nighttime water rescue.
Read More →
Blackhawk Debuts Mini EDC Pocket Multi-Tool
The Blackhawk Mini EDC Pocket Multi-Tool stows easily in pants pockets thanks to a sturdy stainless steel pocket clip and incorporates several essential/emergency tools into a single, high-mobility unit.
Read More →
Team Wendy Introduces the EXFIL Endurance Ballistic Helmet, Engineered to Reduce the Burden of Extended Wear
Team Wendy has launched its EXFIL Endurance, a new lightweight ballistic helmet engineered to deliver protection, comfort, and fit during demanding, extended operations.
Read More →
The First Responders Children’s Foundation National First Responders Day Roll Call of Heroes Ceremony Returns to Times Square, NYC
First Responders Children’s Foundation (FRCF), in collaboration with T-Mobile, will host the Roll Call of Heroes ceremony in Times Square to commemorate National First Responders Day on Wednesday, Oct. 28. During the event, FRCF will present 18 Hero Awards.
Read More →
Streamlight to Showcase Newest Lighting Products for Law Enforcement Professionals at IACP 2026
Streamlight will showcase its newest lights for law enforcement at the International Association of Chiefs of Police Annual Conference & Expo. Featured lights will include the TLR-3 X, the PolyTac 1X, and more.
Read More →
Streamlight Portable Scene Light III Wins 2026 OH&S New Product of the Year Award
Streamlight’s Portable Scene Light III has won the 2026 Occupational Health & Safety (OH&S) New Product of the Year Award in the Lighting category.
Read More →
Adept Armor Introduces Two New Rifle Plates
Adept Armor has launched two new Level IV ballistic plates, the Emperor and the Archon Mark 2, which brings Adept Armor’s new Quatroid ceramic to the high-threat, performance-value center of the range at 5.2 pounds.
Read More →
POLICE Product Test: Benchmade Bailout
The Benchmade Bailout is a slim, lightweight carry knife with a deep-ride pocket clip and comes in a variety of blade steels and scales. Here is a detailed review of the Taiga Green Bailout, released earlier this year.
Read More →
NLEOMF Announces July 2026 Officer of the Month
NLEOMF honored a Michigan deputy sheriff as the July 2026 Officer of the Month for rescuing a trapped driver from a burning vehicle following a Fourth of July crash.
Read More →
Streamlight to Showcase Newest Lighting Products at National Safety Council’s Safety Congress & Expo 2026
Streamlight will showcase its latest lights, including the Portable Scene Light III and the LiteBox 1Million, at the 2026 National Safety Council (NSC) Safety Congress & Expo.
Read More →