Police pursuits seem to happen more often than people realize, whether they occur here in Pennsylvania or elsewhere. They only tend to make the news when they involve a tragedy. If an innocent motorist ends up injured, a central issue to a personal injury claim could be whether the police made the right call when it came to pursuing the alleged suspect vehicle.
A 22-year-old Pennsylvania woman may end up asking a court to answer that question. She suffered injuries in a head-on collision involving a vehicle being pursued by police. The police department alleges that the officers involved did nothing wrong, but that may not be entirely true. Only time will tell.
The woman was on her way home from work at around 3 a.m. As she headed southbound on Toll Route 66, she had no idea that a vehicle driven by a 37-year-old man was heading right for her in her lanes. Well behind the wrong-way vehicle were patrol cars. According to officers, they thought that remaining far enough behind in order to safely stop if a crash occurred with lights and sirens going would be enough to alert unsuspecting drivers such as this woman that danger was ahead. However, the crash occurred at a bend in the roadway where visibility may have been an issue.
Anytime a police chase that results in injuries occurs, the conduct of the officers and the policies of the police department come into question. A Pennsylvania department may end up having to substantiate the actions of its officers by defending against a personal injury claim. If the court determines that the officers and/or the department somehow failed in their responsibilities to the public, it could be held liable for the damages sustained by the injured woman.