WILL CALIFORNIA’S PURSUIT IMMUNITY PROTECT PUBLIC SAFETY OR SET DANGEROUS PRECEDENTS?
by Tyler J. Sherman on August 14, 2025
posted in Law Enforcement, Police Pursuits,
Tens of thousands of police pursuits occur every year in California according to data from the California Highway Patrol. Hundreds can result in serious crashes causing death or injury to officers, civilians or suspects. Seeing a need to stem the number of pursuit-related crashes, the Legislature adopted Vehicle Code section 17004.7 in 1987. (Alcala v. City of Corcoran, 147 Cal.App.4th 666, 672 (2007).) Vehicle Code section 17001 makes public entities liable for employees’ negligent driving: “A public entity is liable for death or injury to person or property proximately caused by a negligent ... Continue Reading
