The San Diego Police Department (SDPD) agreed to make some changes to its vehicle pursuit policy based on recommendations by the Commission on Police Practices (CPP). Out of the nine recommendations, the department agreed at least partially to seven.
They committed to changing how they track and report vehicle pursuits and to exploring the creation of a vehicle pursuit review board.
But Police Chief Scott Wahl said he won’t limit the department’s reasons for starting the pursuits.
“If you don't have a vehicle pursuit policy or if you had a very high threshold, whether it's felony or violent crime associated, then for the infractions and misdemeanors and everything in between, it'll be sending the wrong message that it's okay to flee. There's no consequences,” he said.
The commission said SDPD shouldn’t start car chases for violations that don’t pose an immediate and serious threat to public safety — things like unarmed car theft, speeding or nonworking headlights.
A CPP analysis of SDPD data found San Diego police start the majority of high-speed chases over low-level violations, including one in December 2023 that ended when the pursued driver allegedly crashed into a vehicle carrying 4-year-old Mason and 8-year-old Malikai Orozco-Romero, killing them.
At least three more people, including Officer Austin Machitar, died in SDPD vehicle pursuits while CPP reviewed the department’s policy.
The new chair of the commission, Doug Case, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Wahl’s decision followed pushback by the San Diego Police Officers Association, who also argued restricting reasons for vehicle pursuits would put the community further at risk.
Wahl said some cities and states have already observed rising crime rates in response to restrictive pursuit policies — like auto thefts in New Jersey and dangerous driving in Washington — contradicting a study by the Police Executive Research Forum used to guide CPP’s recommendations.
CPP also found Black and Latino people in San Diego were disproportionately chased in vehicle pursuits — and for the most minor infractions, including things like failure to yield.
The most vehicle pursuits over infractions were started in the police divisions that include formerly redlined neighborhoods and downtown.
Read Chief Wahl’s full response to the vehicle pursuit recommendations here.
