6.1 Road Policing

Question 1

What is the overriding principle in regards to urgent duty driving?

Answer 1

The overarching principle is that public and police employee safety takes precedence over the necessity to undertake urgent duty driving.

No duty is so urgent that it requires the public or police to be placed at unjustified risk.

Question 2

When must warning devices be used when conducting urgent duty driving?

Answer 2

Police must use red and blue flashing lights and sirens at all times while undertaking urgent duty driving unless a tactical approach is used.

Question 3

What is a tactical approach?

Answer 3

Urgent duty driving without the lights and sirens activated. This increases risks to the safety of Police and public. Therefore, using a tactical approach is the exception rather than the rule.

Question 4

Situations when you would use a tactical approach include (3):

Answer 4

1) Approaching the scene of a serious crime in progress
2) Attending a report of a suicidal person
3) Obtaining evidence of a speeding offence, where the offender’s driving is not dangerous and the risk of not using the warning devices is judged as low

Any tactical approach must be proportional to the incident. A tactical approach whilst exceeding the speed limit can only be used in justifiable circumstances.

Question 5

Is there a defence for proceeding against traffic signals or through intersections without lights and sirens activated?

Answer 5

No. Even when using a tactical approach, if neither lights nor sirens are used, then the defences for proceeding against traffic signals or through intersections do not apply.

Question 6

What is the definition of a fleeing driver (3)?

Answer 6

1) A fleeing driver is a driver who has been signalled to stop by a constable that fails to stop
2) or remain stopped,
3) or a driver who flees as a result of police presence, whether signalled to stop or not.

Question 7

Fact - What are the five roles who can abandon a pursuit?

Answer 7

1. Lead vehicle.
2. Second vehicle
3. Field supervisor
4. Dispatcher
5. Pursuit controller

Question 8

What is the overarching principle in terms of a fleeing driver incident?

Answer 8

The overarching principle is that public and police employee safety takes precedence over the immediate apprehension of a fleeing driver.

Question 9

How many units are permitted to be behind a fleeing driver?

Answer 9

Two: the initiating and secondary units.

The dog unti may be additional to the initiating and secondary units. Dog units must notify the pursuit controller if they are available to provide tactical assistance.

Question 10

What steps do you take following a direction (or decision) to abandon a pursuit (5)?

Answer 10

• Acknowledge any direction to abandon the pursuit
• Immediately reduce speed to increase distance
• Deactivate lights and sirens ONLY once below speed limit
• Stop when safe to do so and advise comms of location and that you are stationary
• Commence inquiry phase

Question 11

Who can conduct a non-compliant vehicle stop?

Answer 11

AOS or STG members who are trained

Question 12

What two pieces of legislation might you use to stop a car?

Answer 12

Sec 114 Land Transport -
A constable in a vehicle following another vehicle by displaying flashing blue and red lights or sounding a siren, to require the driver of the other vehicle to stop

Sec 9 Search and Surveillance-
Empowers a constable to stop a vehicle if they have reasonable grounds to suspect that a person is unlawfully at large or has committed an offence punishable by imprisonment, and believes the person is in that vehicle.

Question 13

According to rule 5.3 of the Land Transport Rule, police have a defence for speeding if…(2)

Answer 13

1) The vehicle was being used by a constable engaged in urgent duty driving and compliance with the speed limit would likely prevent execution of the officers duty
2) The vehicle was an emergency vehicle being used in an emergency and was operating a red beacon or siren or both

Question 14

Fact - What was held in Tapara v Police (1988) with respect to the stopping of his vehicle under the LTA?

Answer 14

Sec 114 does not give police unrestricted rights to interfere with the activities of the citizen and it should not have been used to stop the vehicle for the purpose of interviewing the passenger.

Question 15

Section 114 - officer requirements

Answer 15

The officer must be in uniform, or wearing a distinctive cap, hat or helmet, with a badge of authority affixed to it or be using flashing blue or blue and red flashing lights and sound a siren when stopping a vehicle.

Question 16

Section 35 (Policing Act 2008) - Closing of roads

Answer 16

A constable may temporarily close to traffic, any road or part of a road leading to or from the vicinity of a place, if the constable has reasonable cause to believe that

• Public disorder exists or is imminent
• Danger to a member of the public exists or may be reasonably expected at that place
• An offence punishable by 10 years imprisonment has been committed or discovered at or near the place

Traffic means all or any traffic (including pedestrians).

Temporarily means for a period reasonable in the circumstances

Question 17

Concept - What is the definition of a road according to section 35 of the Policing Act 2008? Why is this section particularly relevant to frontline duties?

Answer 17

A motorway, private road, or private way. You might close a road to traffic (including pedestrians) when dealing with an incident.

Question 18

What must you include in the initial report of a fleeing driver incident to COMMS?

Answer 18

Location
Direction of travel
Fleeing driver description
Reason for pursuit

Question 19

Tell me about the case law around section 119 regarding an officer’s obligations when freshly pursing onto private property to breath test?

Answer 19

Section 119 LTA places upon the officer in such circumstances an inescapable duty to identify himself and to tell the person pursued and the occupant of the premises that the power of entry is being exercised under the section; the police failed to discharge that duty.

Question 20

What is section 113 LTA specifically written for?

Answer 20

The enforcement of transport legislation.

Question 21

Under section 114, LTA 1998, what powers do enforcement officers have (5)?

Answer 21

1) Stop and remain stopped
2) Demand driver details
3) Ask drive to state whether they are the owner of the vehicle
4) If driver is not the owner, to provide details of the owner.
5) May arrest if GCTS they have failed to comply with a request or given false or misleading information.

Question 22

What power does Section 119, LTA 1998, give Police?

Answer 22

Police may enter if in fresh pursuit, a driver who has, refused to give details, driven dangerously or recklessly, or driven under the influence of drink or drug, to carry out EBA procedures or complete roadside procedures as if the person were sill in a vehicle on a road.

Question 23

Section 121 - Enforcement officer may immobilise vehicle, etc, in specified circumstances? What are they?

Answer 23

RGTB either

a) person in charge of vehicle
i) physically/mentally unable to control vehicle
ii) not completed compulsory impairment testing
iii) failed/refused compulsory impairment test
b) not rested
c) public interest

Question 24

Tell me about the case law around 114 where the constable just wanted to talk to a passenger and the vehicle failed to stop.

Answer 24

His honour went on to say that as the constables were not concerned with any aspect of the Transport Act but simply wished to talk to the passenger of the vehicle they could not rely on their power under s 114 to stop the vehicle.

Question 25

What was held in R v Thomas in relation to the locating of cannabis following a stop under S114 of the LTA 1998.

Answer 25

It is not lawful to use s 114 of the Land Transport Act 1998 to stop a vehicle for a purpose unrelated to traffic enforcement. Every vehicle stop must be able to be legally justified. Alternatively, you should consider section 121 and 9 of the SSA 2012.

Question 26

What was the finding in Johnston v Police after a driver was stopped by plain clothes officers, arrested for theft, ran away, and then charged with theft and escapes custody.

Answer 26

It was found that the requirements under section 114 are not merely technical. They were not carried out and the detention of the driver was a breach of section 22 BORA.

The decisions serve as a reminder that there is no general power to stop motor vehicles outside the clear statutory powers. CIB and other non-uniform members should take particular note of the procedural requirements relating to identification contained in section 114 if future decisions similar to this are to be avoided.

Question 27

What was held in R v Duff with respect to using powers under the LTA to check for WTAs?

Answer 27

The existence or otherwise of any warrant for the arrest of the driver is another legitimate inquiry. There is no good reason why a person who is subject to a warrant for arrest for murder should escape detection because an enquiry about the existence of warrants is made after he or she is stopped under s114.

Question 28

What is a critical incident with regard to urgent duty driving (3)?

Answer 28

Where:

1) Force of the threat of force is involved
2) Any person faces the risk of serious harm
3) Police are responding to people in the act of committing a crime.

Question 29

What must you do when a pursuit has been abandoned (6)?

Answer 29

• Immediately acknowledge any direction to abandon
• Reduce speed
• Deactivate warning lights
• Stop as soon as it is safe to do so
• Confirm stationary and give location
• Inquiry phase

Question 30

Define urgent duty driving

Answer 30

When an enforcement officer on duty is driving above the speed limit or the natural flow of traffic, and may not be complying with certain traffic rules, and is:

• responding to a CrItical incident
• gaThering evidence of an alleged offence
• apprEhenDing an offender for a traffic or criminal offence
• apprehending a fleeing driver
• participating in a motorcAde
• engaged in activities approved by the CommissioneR in writing

AND:

• Relying on the defenceS under LT (RU 2004) and the LTA (1998) for not complying with rules that would prevent the executiON of that duty

Question 31

What factors should you consider when undertaking urgent duty driving?

Answer 31

• time of the incident (is it in progress?)
• nature and seriousness of the incident
• proximity of the incident
• proximity of other units to the incident
• environment
• driver classification, vehicle classification, and vehicle passengers
• whether warning devices are activated or a tactical approach is being used
• vehicle type

Question 32

List what a tactical approach can involve (3)

Answer 32

• adjusting the vehicle speed
• turning off or not activating the siren
• turning off or not activating the warning lights

Question 33

List the principles of the fleeing driver policy

Answer 33

• sAfeTy takes precedence over the apprehension of a fleeing driver
• a driver failing to stop or remain stopped is not sufficienT reason to commence a pursuit
• invEstigatioN is preferred
• only justifieD when the threat posed by the vehicle’s occupants BEFORE signaling the driver to stop AND the necessity to immediately apprehend the driver and/or passengers OUTWEIGHS THE RISK OF HARM created by the pursuit
• consider the likely impact of any response on the riSk of Harm, particularly where CYP are involved
• all staff share a collective responsibility to achieve safety
• abandOnment/not pursuing will be suppOrted
• fleeing driver events will be investigated
• events will be reviewed in a TimEly manner
• staff may be criminally liable if their manner of driving contRavenes legislation

Question 34

When using a tactical approach, vehicle speed and manner of driving must reflect and take into account…

Answer 34

The increased risks resulting from the absence of warning devices.

Question 35

Can a tactical approach be used once a fleeing driver incident is initiated?

Answer 35

No. Any deactivation of warning devices must be in line with the fleeing driver abandonment procedure.