A Tenleytown hardware store was robbed by two armed, masked men this morning, prompting a mile-long police chase through the neighborhood, complete with accompanying U.S. Park Police helicopter. If your commute through this area was hell on Earth today, feel free to send these lovely robbers a thank-you note.
The Post says that an employee of the Ace Hardware store in the 4500 block of Wisconsin Avenue NW was ambushed by the robbers while taking out some garbage behind the store at 8:30 a.m. The suspects then forced the worker back inside in order to rob the store. No one was injured. After making off with about $1000 in a Cadillac, the chase ensued, ending near the intersection of Connecticut Ave. and Ordway St., where the car crashed. Two of the suspects have been apprehended, while a third, a teenager who was driving the car, is reportedly still at large.
High speed police chases don’t happen as often in D.C. as they do in say, L.A. (where a debate about the media’s involvement is broadcasting live chases has been going on for years), and certainly not in fancy Tenleytown. But given this morning’s events, MPD officers may want to pay close attention to the goings on at the Supreme Court over the next few months, as the justices look into the case of Harris vs. Scott. From yesterday’s LA Times:
Can a police officer be sued for hitting into a fleeing car during a high-speed chase and causing an accident that leaves the driver badly injured or dead?
The Supreme Court took up that question today in a case from rural Georgia, and the likely answer appeared to be “no.”
The case has drawn wide attention because it could set national rules to limit police chases. More than 300 people per year are killed in police chases. Most of the victims are the motorists who tried to flee the police, but a substantial number are innocent bystanders. Each year, several police officers die in such chases.
But during the oral arguments today, most of the justices said they were not inclined to restrict the police from using force when they are pursuing a dangerous speeder.
Message to local criminals: Police chases are legally dangerous. Message to local media: Please don’t start putting these things on live TV.
