Controversial grabber fails during police chase

Instead of safely bringing the fleeing suspect to a stop, the device broke and the car nearly hit a parked police officer

The police must do everything possible to catch the suspect. There are several tactics in their repertoire, including one called the Brawler. Now, questions are being raised about the effectiveness and safety of a technique used by Seattle police after they failed to stop a suspect.

The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office in Washington recently released the first use of the device, which is apparently a net mounted on the bumper of a patrol car. The system is designed to wrap around a suspect’s rear wheels and then remain connected to the pursuing officer’s patrol car, allowing officers to slow and control the fleeing vehicle once deployed. In the Thurston County incident, that was not the case.

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Instead, officers deployed the device, but it snapped as they tried to slow down the fleeing suspect in a Honda sedan. As a result, the driver of the getaway vehicle lost control, narrowly missing a police officer who was parked on the side of the road, and then went through a fence and hit a tree.

Sheriff Derek Sanders told Fox News that he praised the technology despite its apparent failure, saying “we’re going to use these grapples, we’re going to use these PIT maneuvers, all These different tactics to stop these people as quickly as possible. To his credit, Sergeant Chatterton of the same department clarified, “It can be a safer tool.” Interestingly, he went on to talk about using PIT. “Other agencies” of strategy, and how they “launch, spin, and crash… This tool can’t do that.”

There’s no doubt that Grappler reduces the risk that police officers may spin after a PIT attempt. Carscoops has highlighted such situations in the past, including situations where suspects have escaped. Of course, in a situation like this, the risk of a car hitting other cars, including innocent bystanders, cannot be ignored.

In its report, Gizmodo noted that one use of Grappler in Arizona resulted in eight injuries and three deaths. Another crash in North Dakota resulted in a police car flipping over and the officer driving the vehicle being injured. There’s no doubt that these incidents don’t look good for technology designed to improve safety for everyone involved. Perhaps it’s time for departments across the country to consider the strategy outlined by the Justice Department in 2023, which is to reduce pursuits and instead use other means like drones and helicopters to track suspects.

Photo Credit: Sheriff Sanders