805- Vehicle Pursuit Review

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I. Purpose

Vehicle pursuits are sometimes necessary to ensure the safety of Harris County residents and Harris County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) employees, but they also carry inherent risk. In order to manage that risk, HCSO requires the prompt review of all vehicle pursuits to ensure compliance with relevant laws and internal written directives and to provide timely feedback to employees on their actions.

II. Definitions

Administrative Disciplinary Committee (ADC): A committee consisting of the bureau commanders or designees appointed by the Sheriff to review internal investigations and make disciplinary recommendations.

Blue Team: A module in the IAPro software for recording notes on employee performance and behavior including corrective and disciplinary actions.

Corrective Action: Any action by a supervisor to change an HCSO employee’s behavior in an attempt to bring it in line with HCSO written directives, as further described in Policy 301 — Corrective Actions and Disciplinary Procedures.

Critical-Case Pursuit Review: A pursuit review undertaken by IAD personnel that must be presented to the ADC upon its conclusion. A critical-case pursuit review is only undertaken when a vehicle pursuit involves a violation of HCSO written directives with inherently high safety risks, such as a deputy driving against the normal flow of traffic on a highway. The critical-case review process ensures that unnecessary risk is discovered and addressed as quickly as possible.

Division-Level Pursuit Review: A pursuit review undertaken by division supervisors rather than IAD personnel. This is the default review procedure for pursuits undertaken by HCSO employees.

Internal Affairs Division (IAD): The division within HCSO responsible for conducting internal investigations. Though IAD may, in coordination with a bureau commander, assign certain investigations to bureau personnel, IAD personnel shall handle all investigations involving any of the following:

  • Allegations of misconduct,
    • Deputy-involved shootings,
    • In-custody deaths, and
    • Possible violations of department policy that involve multiple personnel who are assigned to different bureaus.

    Misconduct: Violations of federal or state laws or local ordinances and alleged conduct including: use of excessive force, untruthfulness, unlawful search, unlawful arrest, civil rights violations, racially motivated police actions, discrimination, sexual harassment, violations of court orders, or any conduct that seriously degrades the integrity or good order of HCSO. For purposes of this policy, allegations of untruthfulness shall include false, untrue, or misleading statements, either by overt means or by omission. Misconduct does not include minor rule violations of a less serious nature.

    Personnel Early Warning System (PEWS): A system for tracking and reviewing incidents of risk to the public, agency, and employees used to identify and assess employee performance and to provide intervention when appropriate, in accordance with Policy 233 — Personnel Early Warning System (PEWS).

    Subject Employee: The employee involved in a vehicle pursuit whose actions are under review.

III. Policy

The vast majority of vehicle pursuits undertaken by HCSO personnel resolve without incident, but all pursuits should be reviewed to identify training or policy deficiencies and to promptly address those deficiencies. Pursuits that result in serious bodily injury or death or that involve particularly dangerous actions undergo a heightened level of review.

IV. Procedure

Every vehicle pursuit undertaken by HCSO personnel shall be reviewed by appropriate personnel.

At any time during the review process, a supervisor who identifies a deficiency in HCSO training or pursuit procedure shall bring that deficiency to the attention of the proper HCSO department as soon as possible so that it may be promptly remedied.

  1. Sergeant Responsibilities
    1. Review

      For every vehicle pursuit, the employee’s sergeant shall review all relevant video, reports, and supplements to determine whether any HCSO written directives were violated.

    2. Blue Team

      If the sergeant identifies no violations of HCSO written directives, they shall document that fact in the Blue Team and forward the Blue Team to the lieutenant.

    3. Addressing Violations
      1. Minor Violations

        If the sergeant identifies minor violations that do not rise to the level of misconduct and determines that those violations could be appropriately addressed through a supervisor corrective action, they shall confer with the lieutenant regarding that course of action.

        If both supervisors agree on that course of action, the sergeant shall generate the corrective action, attach the documentation to the Blue Team, and forward the Blue Team to the lieutenant.

      2. Inherently High Safety Risks

        If the sergeant identifies any violations involving inherently high safety risks, they shall immediately notify the lieutenant, and both the sergeant and lieutenant shall confer with the division commander.

        After conferring with the lieutenant and the division commander, the sergeant shall process the Blue Team in accordance with the division commander’s decision.

        1. If the division commander determines that violations involving inherently high safety risks are not present and that any minor violations can be appropriately addressed through a corrective action, the sergeant shall generate the corrective action, attach the documentation to the Blue Team, and forward the Blue Team to the lieutenant.
        2. If the division commander determines that violations involving inherently high safety risks are present, the sergeant shall complete the Blue Team and forward it to the lieutenant.
  2. Lieutenant Responsibilities
    1. Review

      For every vehicle pursuit, the employee’s lieutenant shall review all relevant video, reports, and supplements to determine whether any HCSO written directives were violated.

    2. Blue Team

      If the lieutenant identifies no violations of HCSO written directives, they shall document that fact in the Blue Team and forward the Blue Team to the division commander.

    3. Addressing Violations
      1. Minor Violations
        1. For those minor violations already identified by the sergeant, the lieutenant shall review the Blue Team and any attachments before forwarding those to the division commander.
        2. If the lieutenant identifies new minor violations that do not rise to the level of misconduct and determines that those violations could be appropriately addressed through a corrective action, they shall return the Blue Team to the sergeant to address those violations.
      2. Inherently High Safety Risks
        1. For violations involving inherently high safety risks first identified by the sergeant, the lieutenant shall review the Blue Team to ensure completeness before forwarding the Blue Team to the division commander.
        2. If the lieutenant identifies violations involving inherently high safety risks not first identified by the sergeant, the lieutenant shall:
      3. ) Return the Blue Team to the sergeant for further review and processing and
      4. ) Confer with the sergeant and division commander regarding the newly observed violations involving inherently high safety risks.
        1. After conferring with the sergeant and the division commander, the lieutenant shall review the Blue Team and any attachments in accordance with the division commander’s decision and forward those to the division commander.
  3. Division Commander Responsibilities
    1. Review

      For every vehicle pursuit, the employee’s division commander shall review all relevant video, reports, and supplements to determine whether any HCSO written directives were violated.

    2. Blue Team

      If the division commander identifies no violations of HCSO written directives, they shall document that fact in the Blue Team and forward it to IAD for closing out.

    3. Addressing Violations
      1. Minor Violations
        1. For those minor violations already identified by the sergeant or lieutenant, the division commander shall review the Blue Team and any attachments, document the completion of any relevant corrective actions in the Blue Team, and forward the Blue Team to IAD for closing out.
        2. If the division commander identifies new minor violations that do not rise to the level of misconduct and determines that those violations could be appropriately addressed through a supervisor corrective action, they shall,
      2. ) Return the Blue Team to the sergeant to address those violations, and
      3. ) Confer with the sergeant and lieutenant regarding the observed new violations.
      4. Inherently High Safety Risks

        Regardless of recommendations made by the sergeant and the lieutenant, the division commander is responsible for the final determination on whether violations involving inherently high safety risks are present.

        If the division commander determines that at least one such violation is present, they shall document that conclusion in Blue Team and forward the Blue Team to IAD for critical-case review.

        1. For violations involving inherently high safety risks first identified by the sergeant or lieutenant, the division commander shall review the Blue Team to ensure completeness before forwarding the Blue Team to IAD for critical-case review.
        2. If the division commander identifies violations involving inherently high safety risks not first identified by the sergeant or lieutenant, the division commander shall,
      5. ) Return the Blue Team to the sergeant for further review and processing in accordance with the division commander’s decision and
      6. ) Confer with the sergeant and lieutenant regarding the newly observed violations involving inherently high safety risks.
  4. IAD Responsibilities

    In most cases, IAD’s only involvement in a pursuit review is closing the case out on Blue Team.

    However, when a division commander identifies any violations involving inherently high safety risks, they shall forward the Blue Team to IAD for critical –case review.

    1. If the IAD division commander agrees that violations involving inherently high safety risks are present, IAD shall conduct a critical-case review and, upon completion, schedule the Blue Team for presentation to the ADC.
    2. If the IAD division commander does not agree that violations involving inherently high safety risks are present, they shall advise the requesting division commander of their determination. After conferral, the Blue Team shall be returned to requesting the division commander who will ensure appropriate corrective action is completed.
  5. ADC Recommendation

    When the ADC makes a recommendation on any critical-case review, IAD personnel shall inform the subject employee’s bureau commander of that recommendation.

  6. Personnel Early Warning System (PEWS)
    1. After the ADC makes a recommendation, all relevant disciplinary actions shall be documented in accordance with Policy 233 — Personnel Early Warning System (PEWS).
    2. Any required training shall be likewise documented upon its completion. Such documentation shall indicate whether the training was completed successfully or unsuccessfully.

References

Policy 233 — Personnel Early Warning System (PEWS)
Policy 301 — Corrective Actions and Disciplinary Procedures

Revision

This policy has been revised on the below listed dates.

December 29, 2025

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