A new study requested by the Board of Police Commissioners and shared by the Los Angeles Police Department has shed light on the alarming frequency of innocent bystanders being injured during police chases in the LA area.
The study analyzed over 4,200 police chases conducted by the LAPD between 2018 and April 2023, of which nearly 1,600 resulted in a crash. Shockingly, 49% of crashes involving injuries or fatalities involved bystanders who were not involved in the chase.
The study also found that the average speed of LAPD car chases was about 46 mph and the highest percentage of crashes, at 64%, occurred when the chases reached between 41 and 80 mph. The LAPD Air Support unit was involved in 38% of pursuits.
