by William Crum
Kansas City, Kan., Interim Police Chief Ellen Hanson announced today that the police department is temporarily suspending chases, unless it is a chase of a felon.
The policy is suspended while the department studies it, she said.
The announcement came after a 7-year-old girl, Jasmine Rodriguez, was killed at 63rd and Leavenworth Road on Wednesday night. A man who had been pulled over for a traffic stop fled from police, driving north on 63rd Street, failed to stop for a red light and hit a minivan on Leavenworth Road that was carrying the 7-year-old.
Another recent incident involved a chase on Feb. 17, in which an innocent bystander, Graciela Olivas, who was driving in the area of 34th and Shawnee, was killed.
Mayor Mark Holland made a statement today: “Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their family at this tragic time. I support our police chief and our police department in an aggressive evaluation of both our policy and the implementation of police pursuits.”
See earlier story, https://wyandotteonline.com/child-dies-in-crash-on-leavenworth-road/.