Police inquiries are continuing after a group of men allegedly burgled a Bottle-O, in Caversham, early on Saturday — and after they were seen by police, sped away only to smash into a power pole less than a minute later.
One of the five occupants of the car died at the scene and two were taken to hospital with serious injuries.
Commissioner Andrew Coster said the police’s updated fleeing driver policy, which came into effect yesterday, balanced public safety with the ability to hold offenders to account.
The policy, announced late last year, contained the new "fleeing driver framework", which would help police decide if the safety risk justified a pursuit or not.
The policy factored in the threat posed by the driver, or occupants of the vehicle, as well as the seriousness of the offence suspected to have been committed, and the risk of the fleeing suspects to commit further harm.
"The clarity our staff will obtain from the refreshed policy enables police to address these trends when drivers refuse to pull over when instructed, while acknowledging that risk and safety of all involved must always come first," Comm Coster said.
The police pursuit policy became more conservative in 2020 after a string of high-profile deaths.
Comm Coster said yesterday subsequent feedback from staff and communities called for "a different balance".
After the previous policy came into effect in December 2020 "offenders have become more brazen and are taking more risks in their driving behaviour".
He said before 2020, police pursued about 70% of drivers who fled, and when the policy changed that had halved.
Police had since been able to demonstrate that when police were less likely to pursue drivers, suspects were actually more likely to flee.
"And there’s risk inherent in that whether or not police are behind them at the time."
Several high-profile fleeing driver incidents have been reported in the Otago Daily Times recently.
Last August, a Dunedin man led police on a brief chase through busy suburban streets with a 4-year-old boy in the back seat.
Due to the dangerous nature of his driving, police abandoned their chase.
He was arrested after the car was found and members of the public witnessed the driver leaving the car with a child and dog.
In April, a group of teenagers was arrested after fleeing Dunedin police in a stolen car which was brought to a halt using road spikes.
After the car failed to stop, police spiked the vehicle in Forbury Rd. It travelled as far as Midland St before eventually coming to a stop following a minor crash.
In the same weekend, a 17-year-old learner driver led police on a short pursuit that reached speeds of up to 188kmh on Dunedin’s Southern Motorway.
Police tried to stop the vehicle but the driver fled and police did not follow.
The vehicle and driver were located later in the day.
Earlier this month, a carload of Invercargill teens were tracked by police across coastal Otago in a stolen car after allegedly robbing a Waitati dairy.
When officers located the vehicle at a property just north of Waikouaiti, it was swarmed by police.
In this most recent case, in Dunedin, it was not clear whether police were in pursuit when the car crashed, killing an occupant.
Police have referred the matter to the Independent Police Conduct Authority.
Three men appeared in Dunedin District Court yesterday in relation to the incident, facing burglary charges.
One person remained in hospital.
Police had nothing to say about the incident in relation to the updated fleeing driver policy yesterday, a spokeswoman said.
